Mortimer Davis
| Sir Mortimer Davis | |
|---|---|
Historical photo of Mortimer Davis
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| Born |
Mortimer Barnett Davis February 6, 1866 Montreal, Quebec |
| Died | March 22, 1928 (aged 62) Cannes, France |
| Citizenship | Canada |
| Occupation | Businessman, philanthropist |
| Spouse(s) | Henriette Marie Meyer |
| Children | 1 |
Sir Mortimer Barnett Davis (February 6, 1866 – March 22, 1928) was a Canadian businessman and philanthropist. The home he built in the Golden Square Mile has been renamed Purvis Hall and is today owned by McGill University.
Born in Montreal, Quebec, to Samuel Davis and Minnie Falk Davis, he graduated from High School of Montreal and then joined his elder brothers Eugene Harmon and Maurice Edward in the family's cigar business, S. Davis and Sons. In 1888 S. Davis and Sons purchased another Montreal firm, D. Ritchie and Company. In 1895, the American Tobacco Company purchased D. Ritchie and Company, as well as the American Cigarette Company, another Montreal cigarette manufacturer. Samuel Davis retired from S. Davis and Sons, and Mortimer Barnett Davis left the family firm, which remained in the hands of two of his brothers, to become president of the American Tobacco Company of Canada.
In 1902, The British-American Tobacco Company Limited, jointly owned by the American Tobacco Company and the Imperial Tobacco Company of England. It later purchased the American Tobacco Company of Canada, which became the Imperial Tobacco Company of Canada Limited, and Mortimer Barnett Davis was its first president. The financial power of the empire over which he presided, earned him the title of "Tobacco King," which he shares with his great rival, Sir William Christopher Macdonald.
In 1917, he was knighted by King George V, becoming the first Canadian-born Jew to receive such an honour.
Mortimer Davis was a member of the Montreal Board of Trade and the as well as a director of many companies, including the Union Bank, Royal Bank of Canada, Henry Corby distillery (he served as president from 1907 to 1922), Crown Trust Company, Empire Tobacco and part of the senior management of the Nova Scotia Silver Cobalt Mining Company and the Consolidated Asbestos Mining Company.
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