William Van Horne

William Van Horne was 14 when he began working on railroads. Illinois-born, and with considerable experience in the U.S. railway business, his career path took him to Canada  in 1882, where he was made general manager of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) – the steel spine of Confederation. Blessed with enormous drive and vision, Van Horne was appointed President of CPR in 1888. This allowed him to transform the corporation into an integrated transportation system that brought immigrants, tourists and trade to Canada. As part of this expansion, he founded the CP hotel chain and launched CPR’s ocean transport division, which focused first on the Pacific realm. Van Horne was a great promoter and patron of the arts in his home and in his company hotels. Knighted in 1894, Van Horne retired five years later, having done his part to develop Canada as a modern, dynamic nation.