Jeffry Hall Brock (1850–1915) was a Canadian businessman who was also politically active at the time of

John A. Macdonald Sir John Alexander Macdonald (10 or 11January 18156June 1891) was the first prime minister of Canada, serving from 1867 to 1873 and from 1878 until his death in 1891. He was the dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, and had a political ...

. He had a significant influence on the Canadian insurance industry (Great-West Life turned out to be the second biggest insurance conglomerate in Canada, started the first

Western Canada Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West, or Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a list of regions of Canada, Canadian region that includes the four western provinces and t ...

based insurance company), and politics (rallied against high tariffs and the railway monopoly). During his tenure as managing director of Great-West Life, the company's share of sales in Canada's insurance market rose from 0.5% to 13.8%. He is a member of the Canadian Business Hall of Fame Companions.

Personal life

He grew up in

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as The Royal City, it is roughly east of Kitchener, Ontario, Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Ontario Highway 6, ...

Canada West The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in British North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report ...

and is the son of Thomas Rees Brock and Eleanor Thompson, and brother to William Rees (a partner in Ogilvy & Company). He attended both public and private schools in Guelph. The youngest of 11 children, he showed a strong interest in business and entrepreneurship early on, selling things at the age of 15, four years before moving to the United States where he worked as a salesman in St. Louis, Missouri. After some time there he left for New York where he became a business representative for R. G. Dunn & Company (he left Guelph almost immediately after finishing high school). In 1876 when he was living in Toronto he married Louisa Gillespie, his only wife with whom he had 12 children. His strong views regarding the ease of doing business in western Canada and being against monopolies (which resulted in high insurance premiums) led him to politics where he helped found the

liberal party of Manitoba The Manitoba Liberal Party () is a political party in Manitoba, Canada. Its roots can be traced to the late 19th century, following the province's creation in 1870. History Origins and early development (to 1883) Originally, there were no off ...

. He also served as acting warden of Holy Trinity Anglican Church, joined

Manitoba Health Manitoba Health, Seniors and Long–Term Care (formerly Health, and Seniors Care, MHSC; also known as Manitoba Health) is the department of the Government of Manitoba that is responsible for leading the development of policy and publicly administ ...

by appointment in 1893 and was director of the Northern Trusts Company, in 1905 became a founding member of the St. Charles Country Club. Four of his children pre-deceased him.

Business life

He was a business executive in

Troy, New York Troy is a city in and the county seat of Rensselaer County, New York, United States. It is located on the western edge of the county, on the eastern bank of the Hudson River just northeast of the capital city of Albany, New York, Albany. At the ...

for RG Dunn & Company for three years from 1869 to 1872, then moved to Toronto to help his brother William Rees at Ogilvy and Company until 1877 when he and his brother started a dry goods business called W. R. Brock and Brother in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

but he didn't move to Winnipeg until George Frederick Carruthers offered him a partnership position in a major insurance company. In 1890/1891 he founded Great-West Life, a direct response to rising discontent in Western Canada with the insurance industry (all of them were based in Eastern Canada and Canadian companies represented only 29% of the industry, that caused premiums to be very high). He started the insurance company also because development by farmers and retailers in Western Canada needed capital funding and Jeffrey Brock, who had a relationship with farmers and other business people, wanted to help them. He supervised the young, fast-growing company which expanded to Eastern Canada in 1895 when it acquired Saint John based Dominion Safety Fund Life Association and the United States in 1906 when it began operating in North Dakota (American business became separate from Canadian operations in 1979 and became The Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company). Great-West Life was incorporated on August 28, 1891; Brock led the company alongside Winnipeg mayor

Alexander Macdonald Alexander or Alex MacDonald may refer to: Politics * Alasdair Óg of Islay (died 1299), Lord of Islay and chief of Clann Domhnaill * Alexander of Islay, Earl of Ross, or Alexander MacDonald (died 1449), Scottish nobleman * Alexander MacDonald, 5th ...

who was its first president.

References

External links

Urban Myths:Great-West Life (cbc)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brock, Jeffry Hall 1850 births 1915 deaths Canadian Anglicans Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) Businesspeople from Ontario