Harold Quinton (c. 1899–1969) was an American business executive. He served as the president, chief executive officer and chairman of

Southern California Edison Southern California Edison (or SCE Corp), the largest subsidiary of Edison International, is the primary electricity supply company for much of Southern California. It provides 15 million people with electricity across a service territory of app ...

in the 1950s and 1960s. During his tenure, he oversaw the construction of the

San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station The San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) is a permanently closed nuclear power plant located south of San Clemente, California, on the Pacific coast, in Nuclear Regulatory Commission Region IV. The plant was shut down in 2013 after repl ...

San Diego County, California San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the fi ...

, and he planned the construction of the

Mohave Power Station Mohave Power Station (known also as Mohave Generating Station, or MOGS) was a 1580 megawatt electric (MWe) coal-fired power plant that was located in Laughlin, Nevada. Southern California Edison is the majority owner of the plant and was its ...

Laughlin, Nevada Laughlin is an unincorporated resort town and census-designated place in Clark County, Nevada, United States. It is located on the Colorado River, directly across from the much larger Bullhead City, Arizona. Laughlin lies south of Las Vegas, i ...

Early life

Harold Quinton was born in

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ; Kansa language, Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the Capital (political), capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the County seat, seat of Shawnee County, Kansas, Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the ...

circa 1899. He became orphaned at 13. Quinton graduated from

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

. He served in the

United States Cavalry The United States Cavalry, or U.S. Cavalry, was the designation of the mounted force of the United States Army by an act of Congress on 3 August 1861.Price (1883) p. 103, 104 This act converted the U.S. Army's two regiments of dragoons, one ...

during

World War I 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 ...

Career

Quinton first worked for the

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison, Kansas, Atchison and Top ...

at the age of 17. He subsequently worked for the

United States Department of the Treasury The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States, where it serves as an executive department. The department oversees the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and t ...

, followed by a tax firm in

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

. He later served as the president of

Buffum's Buffums, originally written as Buffums' with an apostrophe, was a chain of upscale department stores, headquartered in Long Beach, California. The Buffums chain began in 1904, when two brothers from Illinois, Charles A. and Edwin E. Buffum, ...

, a department store based in

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, 1975

Quinton joined Southern California Edison in 1942, eventually serving as its president and chief executive officer from 1954 to 1959. He served as its chairman from 1958 to 1968, when he was succeeded by Jack K. Horton. Quinton also served on its board of directors from 1956 to 1969. During his tenure as chairman, he oversaw the construction of the

. Meanwhile, in 1966, he signed a contract to build the

. Quinton served as the president of the

Edison Electric Institute The Edison Electric Institute (EEI) is an association that represents all U.S. investor-owned electric companies. Its members provide electricity for 220 million Americans, operate in 50 states and the District of Columbia, and directly employ ...

. He also served on the boards of directors of the Kaiser Steel Corporation, the Pacific Mutual Life Insurance Company, and the First Western Bank and Trust Company. Additionally, he served on the board of directors of Calabasas Park, a real estate development company whose goal was to develop the former

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

ranch in

Calabasas, California Calabasas (from Spanish language, Spanish ''calabazas'' "gourds") is a city in the southwestern region of the San Fernando Valley, between the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains, Santa Monica and Santa Susana Mountains, Santa Susanna mounta ...

into a residential area. Quinton served on the board of trustees of the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

. He gave speeches in favor of competition and

free market capitalism In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any ...

as well as a reduction in government spending and taxation. He was named the California Industrialist of the Year by the

California Museum of Science and Industry The California Science Center (sometimes spelled California ScienCenter) is a state agency and museum located in Exposition Park, Los Angeles, next to the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and the University of Southern California. Bi ...

in 1967.

Personal life, death and legacy

Quinton had a wife, Grace, and a daughter, Mrs Charles Reed. He was active in the

Boys Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded ...

. He resided in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

, where he died on April 28, 1969. He was 70 years old. The Harold Quinton Chair in Business Policy and Professor of Management and Organization at the

Marshall School of Business The USC Marshall School of Business is the business school of the University of Southern California. It is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. In 1997 the school was renamed following a $35 million donation fr ...

of the

was named in his honor; it is held by Professor Paul Adler.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Quinton, Harold 1969 deaths People from Topeka, Kansas People from Santa Monica, California Businesspeople from Los Angeles Northwestern University alumni United States Army personnel of World War I American chief executives American chairpersons of corporations American energy industry executives American corporate directors Southern California Edison University of Southern California people Year of birth uncertain 1890s births