Milton E. Harris, (July 26, 1927 – March 26, 2005) was an American-born Canadian businessman and founder of Harris Steel Group. Born in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

, to Sam and Jenny Harris, he moved to

London, Ontario London is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River (Ontario), Thames River and N ...

, when he was a few months old. Harris attended St. George's School and Central Collegiate Institute before receiving a

Bachelor of Commerce A Bachelor of Commerce (BCom or B Com) is an undergraduate degree in commerce, accounting, mathematics, economics, and management-related subjects. The degree is mainly offered in Commonwealth nations. Structure Bachelor of Commerce The Bac ...

degree from the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

in 1949. After his father suffered a heart attack, Harris took over the day-to-day operation of his family's metals trading business established by his great-grandfather in 1886. He founded Harris Steel Group in 1954 in London, Ontario. Harris was president of the

Canadian Jewish Congress The Canadian Jewish Congress (CJC; ; ; ) was, for more than ninety years, the main advocacy group for the Jewish community in Canada. Regarded by many as the "Parliament of Canadian Jewry," the Congress was at the forefront of the struggle for Hum ...

from 1983 to 1986. In 1986 he was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

in recognition for having "devoted his energies to community service at various levels, endeavouring to improve the quality of life for all Canadians".

Personal life

In 1949, he married Ethel whom he met at the University of Toronto. They had three children – Judith, Naomi and David. Milton Harris died in 2005 of abdominal cancer in Toronto, aged 77.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Milton E. 1927 births 2005 deaths 20th-century Canadian businesspeople American emigrants to Canada 20th-century American Jews Businesspeople from London, Ontario Canadian Jewish Congress members Deaths from cancer in Ontario Officers of the Order of Canada Businesspeople from Detroit University of Toronto alumni 20th-century American businesspeople 21st-century American Jews