Ernest Robert Breech (24 February, 1897 – 3 July, 1978) was an American corporate executive. Although he is widely known for his work in revitalizing

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational corporation, multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. T ...

in the years following

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he served similar roles at

Trans World Airlines Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1930 until it was acquired by American Airlines in 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles ...

and other companies. Breech was drafted by the

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they ...

but opted to attend

Drury College Drury University, formerly Drury College and originally Springfield College, is a private university in Springfield, Missouri, United States. The university's mission statement describes itself as "church-related". It enrolls about 1,590 undergr ...

instead. Breech was a founding member of Phi Alpha Sigma, later

Theta Kappa Nu Theta Kappa Nu () fraternity was an American national collegiate fraternity founded in 1924 by delegates from eleven local fraternities.Shepard, Francis W., ed. (1927)''Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities'' (11th ed.) Menasha, Wi ...

Fraternity A fraternity (; whence, "wikt:brotherhood, brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club (organization), club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular ...

(now

Lambda Chi Alpha Lambda Chi Alpha (), commonly referred to as Lambda Chi, is a fraternities and sororities, collegiate fraternity in North America. With over 300,000 initiates as of 2024, it is the third-largest social fraternity in the world by number of initia ...

). Breech dropped out of college, later taking correspondence courses before taking his

Certified Public Accountant Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is the title of qualified accountants in numerous countries in the English-speaking world. It is generally equivalent to the title of chartered accountant in other English-speaking countries. In the United Stat ...

exam. Breech worked for the Checker Cab Company,

General Motors General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...

, and

Bendix Aviation Bendix Corporation is an American manufacturing and engineering company founded in 1924 and subsidiary of Knorr-Bremse since 2002. During various times in its existence, Bendix made automotive brake shoes and systems, vacuum tubes, aircraft ...

before being persuaded by

Henry Ford II Henry Ford II (September 4, 1917 – September 29, 1987), commonly known as Hank the Deuce, was an American businessman in the automotive industry. He was the oldest son of Edsel Ford I and oldest grandson of Henry Ford. He served as president ...

to come aboard at Ford. Breech served as Ford Motor Company's chairman. Then in 1960, he was a member of the three-person trust overseeing

' jet financing plan. He was inducted into the

Automotive Hall of Fame The Automotive Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum honoring influential figures in the history of the automotive industry. Located in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, US. The Hall of Fame is part of the MotorCities National Herita ...

in 1979. Breech was a 33rd degree

Freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

. His induction to that degree was highlighted in the October 8, 1956 issue of ''Life'' magazine. The Breech School of Business at Drury University is named in his honor due to his donation. The Louise G. Wallace Hospital in

Lebanon, Missouri Lebanon is a city in and the county seat of Laclede County, Missouri, Laclede County in Missouri. The population was estimated at 15,013 at the time of the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Laclede County. The Lebanon Micropolitan Statistical ...

was renamed Breech Medical Center in 1979. The hospital was replaced by a new facility, Mercy Hospital Lebanon, in 1999. A

Great Lakes freighter Lake freighters, or lakers, are bulk carriers operating on the Great Lakes of North America. These vessels are traditionally called boats, although classified as ships. Freighters typically have a long, narrow hull, a raised pilothouse, and the ...

acquired by the Ford Motor Co.'s dedicated fleet was renamed in his honor until the ship's sale in 1988. As of 2017, that freighter sailed for Lower Lakes Transportation as the Ojibway.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Breech, Ernest 1897 births 1978 deaths Ford executives Drury University alumni Bendix Corporation people