J. D. McArthur

John Duncan McArthur (June 25, 1854 – January 10, 1927) was a Canadian industrialist, businessman, and railway builder. Born in Lancaster township, Glengarry County, Canada West, he worked as a farmer before heading west to Manitoba in search of work on railway crews in 1879. He quickly established himself as a capable railroad contractor and obtained numerous small contracts on the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway in Manitoba and the North-West Territories. He also built lines in Saskatchewan and Alberta, including extensive portions of the Alberta and Great Waterways Railway and Grand Trunk Pacific Railway. He also had significant investments in lumber, mining, and real estate, and built the first high-rise in Winnipeg, the McArthur Building.[1] He is considered to be "one of western Canada’s greatest railway contractors" and businessmen, having built over 2,833 miles [4,559 km] of track.