Where It All Began

In 1947 shortly after the war, Al and Jewel Bidstrup started a small electrical contracting company named Jewel Electric. The original name was planned to be Gem State Electric but when they went to register it, the name was already taken in Idaho. The fact that Jewel was Al’s wife’s name was more coincidental. They started out of a small shop in their back yard on 9th Street and eventually moved to a space on the corner of Whittier and Holmes where they built a block building. That building was expanded with a second story as the business grew.

Contracting and motor rewinding were mainstays of the business. In about 1975 Al sold the business to two of his sons, Lyn and Chris. Al died of a heart attack in 1976 shortly after retiring. Lyn and Chris moved the business from the old Whittier location to Northgate Mile in 1977. With the move the business focused more on selling electrical parts and providing repairs in homes and businesses. The motor repair shop was shut down. Heating and later air conditioning were added and started to become a bigger part of the business.