Donald Alexander Smith

Forres, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, 1820 - 1914

Keywords

About MeDonald Alexander Smith
6 August 1820 – 21 January 1914
Businessman and philanthropist

Born in Forres, Donald Smith was educated at the local grammar school. At the age of 17, he set sail for Canada to seek employment with the Hudson’s Bay Company, which ran a thriving fur trade across British colonies and territories in North America. From these humble beginnings, Donald rose to become the wealthiest person in Canada of his time and was bestowed the rank of baron as Lord Strathcona.

However, fortune was a long time coming and for years Donald toiled tirelessly in some of the most isolated and menial positions in the company, loneliness and frustration often affecting his health. In 1853 Donald’s patience finally paid off when the company named him chief trader and, 31 years after setting foot in Canada, he finally became head of the company’s Montreal department. It was during this time that he began to build his fortune, investing in the Bank of Montreal.

By the early 1870s he had accumulated sufficient wealth to purchase shares in the Hudson’s Bay Company and soon became the company’s largest shareholder. Moving quickly through its ranks he became governor in 1889, expanding the company’s business. A noted philanthropist, Donald gave away over £8.5 million of his fortune, including generous donations to the University of Aberdeen.
Additional InfoImage attribution: not stated, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Wikipedia Biography

Loading ...