Charles Fenn Pretty (1865–1940) was the father of the forestry industry in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

Early years

Charles Fenn Pretty was born in 1865 to an

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

family. Charles was brought up on the family farm at Belleville. In his early twenties, he entered the contracting business. He quickly made money off of the demolition of the old jail at Stratford by selling its timbers at a profit. However, he lost everything after building several hundred houses in Sault Ste. Marie for a contractor who went broke and couldn't pay. In 1890, he moved to

New Westminster New Westminster (colloquially known as New West) is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada, and a member municipality of the Metro Vancouver Regional District. It was founded by Major-General Richard Moody as the capita ...

with 17 cents in his pocket and, according to tradition, booked a room in the best hotel straightaway. He got wind of a poorly organised housing project with an impossible deadline, took it over and immediately set about rounding up all available labour from local bars. He finished with one day to spare and to a satisfactory standard. With the proceeds from this development, he opened a fish cannery but was faced with strong opposition. To solve this problem, Pretty bought the entire supply of ice in New Westminster. By 1892 he had bought out all his competitors and incorporated C.F. Pretty and Co.

Forestry

At the end of the 1890s, the forestry industry was gaining momentum and importance in

and Charles began to invest in timber lands. In 1903, he founded Pretty's Timber Exchange. The corporation acted as brokers for timber limits scattered throughout the province, accumulating large acreages for sale by buying up numbers of smaller holdings. This was a huge success. By the start of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Pretty was director or president of several major forestry companies. He was said to sell more timber in a day than any other man, making him a huge fortune. However, the

Wall Street Crash of 1929 The Wall Street Crash of 1929, also known as the Great Crash, was a major American stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of 1929. It started in September and ended late in October, when share prices on the New York Stock Exchange colla ...

hit business hard and he lost much of his businesses. His sons would go on to enter the logging industry, a venture that the family continues to be involved in to this day.

Death

Charles Fenn Pretty died in May 1940, aged seventy-five. His wife, Charlotte, survived him by only one year.

References

*''The People of the Harrison'' - Daphne Sleigh {{DEFAULTSORT:Pretty, Charles Fenn 1865 births 1940 deaths Businesspeople from Belleville, Ontario Canadian foresters