Herbert Samuel Holt
| Sir Herbert Holt | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
February 12, 1856 Geashill, Co. Offaly, Ireland |
| Died | September 29, 1941 (aged 85) Montreal, Quebec, Dominion of Canada |
| Occupation | civil engineer |
| Known for | President of the Royal Bank of Canada |
Sir Herbert Samuel Holt (February 12, 1856 – September 29, 1941) was an Irish-born Canadian civil engineer who became a businessman, banker, and corporate director with a ruthless business reputation. He was President of the Royal Bank of Canada, Montreal Light, Heat & Power, and a director of some 250 companies worldwide, with assets valued at around $200 million. On his death, the Montreal Gazette described him as "the richest man in Canada", but he was also one of the most reviled. Among his peers in the Golden Square Mile, "everyone respected his business ability, but nobody liked him personally". Holt was one of the founders of the Town of Hampstead, Quebec
Holt was born at Ballycrystal, near Geashill, Co. Offaly. He was the second son of William Robert Grattan Holt, of Carberry House, Co. Kildare, inherited in 1742 from his ancestor, Hannah Colley (afterwards Grattan) of Castle Carberry. Holt grew up with his family at another family property, Ballycrystal, a grazing farm of 291 acres. In reference to Holt's own ruthless business reputation, it is of interest to note that in a dispute between his father and his uncle, it was said that, "the business affairs of William Holt's family would not stand up to close scrutiny". Herbert Holt's elder brother, Thomas Grattan Holt (whose granddaughter married John Astor), succeeded to Ballycrystal and Carberry, while Holt studied civil engineering in Dublin. In 1873, he emigrated to Canada, beginning work as an assistant engineer with the Toronto Water Works. In the early 1880s, he was employed to survey and construct portions of the Canadian Pacific Railway across the prairies and through the Rocky Mountains, under James Ross.
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