06.11.2002

Jake W. Dieleman 1904 – 2002

We have received the sad news that Jake Dieleman, founder of Las Vegas Based Jake's Cranes has died, he was 98.

Dieleman was born in Axel, a small town in the province of Zealand, in the south west of the Netherlands. In 1921 he emigrated to Canada and then moved to New England where he became a rigger and crane and excavator operator.

He became a US citizen in 1929 and in 1931 travelled south west to Boulder City, Nevada to work on the Hoover Dam as a ‘high scaler’ (a primitive form of abseiling) and crane operator.
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Jake Dieleman in his prime, at the controls of one of his cranes

In 1946 he founded Jakes Cranes renting mobile cranes, he also took up politics, and was elected to the Nevada Assembly on a Democrat ticket - in 1958 and served two terms. In 1966 he joined the Boulder City Council. He was also a past president of the Builders Exchange, a local contractors association, a member of the American Institute of Mining Engineers, and a lifetime gold card member of the International Union of Operating Engineers.

He handed over the management of Jake's Cranes to his youngest sone Bob in 1981 - his other sons, Roger and Richard later set up their own company Dielco Crane Services. Jake then retired to Kanarraville, Utah where he passed away on November 4th.

He is survived by his wife of 66 years, Ruth, sons Roger, Richard and Robert (Bob), daughter Kathie, his brother, seven grandchildren, and two great grandchildren.