EXCAVATION  CONSTRUCTION SERVICES

Mat Olson comes from a long line of excavators. His great-grandfather worked in the trade at the turn of the twentieth century in Providence, excavating basements with picks, shovels, and horse-drawn scoops.

Mat’s grandfather learned this old method, too, but took advantage of the new technologies and equipment that were making their way into the various trades. He learned how to operate a steam shovel, and bought a dump truck with air-inflated tires. He ran a successful business, working on the massive Scituate Reservoir project for some time. When the Great Depression of 1929 hit, he was forced to sell his dump truck, but continued working in the excavation business for other construction companies. Mat’s grandfather also worked in Connecticut, where he and Mat’s uncle developed a stone quarry, delivering stone all over New England.

In 1948 Mat’s father, Richard Olson, an industrious young man, bought a FarmAll tractor with a snow plow and attachments. He attended school during the day, and worked after school and weekends with the tractor. Small jobs turned into larger ones, and he eventually developed a wide base of customers in the Greenwood section of Warwick.

In 1955, after serving in the military during the Korean War, Richard built his home in East Greenwich. He worked during the day for an excavation contractor, but soon bought his own machine, a new International tractor with a backhoe attachment, and worked nights and weekends. Three years later, he bought a Ford F-6 dump truck and built his own trailer to haul it to job sites. It was then that he left his day job and went into the excavation business full-time with his father-in-law (Mat’s grandfather), Bud Chace.

The company soon developed a reputation for quality work, integrity, getting the job finished, and being able to complete very difficult jobs with accuracy. The business continued  to grow and, in 1979, when Mat graduated from high school, he went to work for the family business, too.

Today, this multi-generation enterprise continues to enjoy an excellent and well-deserved reputation for quality work. Mat now owns and operates the business, and works alongside his own son, John, making Richard E. Olson Excavation, Inc. a 5-generation business. With many years of combined experience and expertise, they excel in projects that are very difficult, jobs that many others in the trade cannot do. As Mat says, “I like the challenge.”