Jean-Louis Lévesque, (April 13, 1911 – December 28, 1994) was a Canadian

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...

thoroughbred racehorse The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

owner, and

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

. J. Louis Lévesque was born in Nouvelle in Quebec's

Gaspé Peninsula The Gaspé Peninsula, also known as Gaspesia (; ), is a peninsula along the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River that extends from the Matapedia Valley in Quebec, Canada, into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. It is separated from New Brunswick o ...

to an

Acadian The Acadians (french: Acadiens , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Most Acadians live in the region of Acadia, as it is the region where the de ...

father and an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

mother. In 1934, he graduated with a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree from

St. Dunstan's University :''St. Andrew's College, Prince Edward Island'' redirects to here. St. Dunstan's University (SDU) is a former university which was located on the northern outskirts of Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada. SDU merged with Prince of Wales C ...

Charlottetown Charlottetown is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County. Named after Queen Charlotte, Charlottetown was an unincorporated town until it was incorporated as a city in ...

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen Provinces and territories of Canada, provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has seve ...

. He then went to work for the

Provincial Bank of Canada The Provincial Bank of Canada (French: ''Banque provinciale du Canada'') was a Quebec-based bank in Canada that was the product of mergers between the Banque Jacques-Cartier (1861), the Banque d'économie de Québec (1848), the Banque populaire d ...

Moncton Moncton (; ) is the most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of New Brunswick. Situated in the Petitcodiac River Valley, Moncton lies at the geographic centre of the The Maritimes, Maritime Provinces. The ...

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

. After a few years in banking, his contacts led to an offer to join a Montreal securities firm as a

stockbroker A stockbroker is a regulated broker, broker-dealer, or registered investment adviser (in the United States) who may provide financial advisory and investment management services and execute transactions such as the purchase or sale of stocks an ...

and his success led to his founding the investment firm Crédit Interprovincial Ltée. in 1941. Lévesque began buying small businesses that he believed were undervalued. He reorganized the companies and then sold some of them for a substantial profit while maintaining others where he saw long-term potential. He eventually merged his business with the securities firm L.G. Beaubien et Cie to form Lévesque, Beaubien Inc. Specializing in government bonds, his brokerage company replaced LJ Forget et Cie as the largest

French Canadian French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fren ...

securities firm in Canada Highly respected throughout the country for his business acumen, Lévesque was appointed by the

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

to serve on the 1957 Royal Commission on

energy In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of heat a ...

that resulted in the creation of the

National Energy Board The National Energy Board was an independent economic regulatory agency created in 1959 by the Government of Canada to oversee "international and inter-provincial aspects of the oil, gas and electric utility industries". Its head office was located ...

. He was invited to sit on the

board of directors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...

of numerous large corporations such as

Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada by the size and passengers carried. Air Canada maintains its headquarters in the borough of Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec. The airline, founded in 1937, provides scheduled and ...

, Dupuis Frères,

Canadian National Railways The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I railroad, Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern United States, M ...

, General Trust of Canada, Equitable Insurance, and Hilton Hotels of Canada, among others. J. Louis Lévesque had a special affinity with the

bilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all E ...

city of Moncton, New Brunswick, and was appointed chancellor of the

University of Moncton A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

in 1967, serving until 1972. Following liftoff in his private jet from Miami, he once famously suggested a few Montreal friends to join him for a lobster dinner, his guests were, however, surprised to find out upon disembarking that they were rather in Moncton. Having amassed a fortune, in his late sixties Lévesque set about planning his retirement with an eye to becoming more involved with the sport of

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

. He began divesting himself of the various companies he controlled including the sale to

Power Corporation of Canada Power Corporation of Canada () is a management and holding company that focuses on financial services in North America, Europe and Asia. Its core holdings are insurance, retirement, wealth management and investment management, including a portfol ...

of his

holding company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...

, TransCanada Funds. In 1988, the

brokerage firm A broker is a person or firm who arranges transactions between a buyer and a seller for a commission when the deal is executed. A broker who also acts as a seller or as a buyer becomes a principal party to the deal. Neither role should be confu ...

Lévesque, Beaubien Inc. became the cornerstone of National Bank Financial. As well J. Louis Lévesque had owned through his holding companies Industrial Life, Provident Life, and Fred Lalemand yeast. He disposed of his main holding company Trans Canada Corporation in a reverse takeover transaction with

Paul Desmarais Sr. Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...

after a long association with Desmarais whom he had initially financed in his entry to Quebec. Among his many accolades, J. Louis Lévesque was voted into the

Canadian Business Hall of Fame The Canadian Business Hall of Fame celebrates the outstanding achievements of Canada's most distinguished business leaders, past and present. Over 170 Order of the Business Hall of Fame Companions serve as inspiring examples for all young Canadians ...

Horse racing

In 1956, J. Louis Lévesque bought a few

standardbred horse The Standardbred is an American horse breed best known for its ability in harness racing, where members of the breed compete at either a trot or pace. Developed in North America, the Standardbred is recognized worldwide, and the breed can trace i ...

s for

harness racing Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait (a trot or a pace). They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, or spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australi ...

and then began investing in

thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

s. Through one of his holding companies, he purchased

Blue Bonnets Raceway The Blue Bonnets Raceway (later named Hippodrome de Montréal) was a horse racing track and casino in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It closed on October 13, 2009, after 137 years of operation. Demolition of the site began in mid-2018, after sitting ...

in Montreal in 1958 where a few years later he added a schedule of

Thoroughbred horse race Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...

s. In addition, he acquired the Richelieu Raceway near Montreal and the

Windsor Raceway Windsor Raceway was a standardbred harness racing track located in Windsor, Ontario. The track was 5/8 of a mile in length. The facility closed August 31, 2012. The inaugural race took place on October 22, 1965, with ''Castle Direct'' driven by F ...

Windsor, Ontario Windsor is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, on the south bank of the Detroit River directly across from Detroit, Michigan, United States. Geographically located within but administratively independent of Essex County, it is the souther ...

. But it would be in Thoroughbred racing where Lévesque left his mark as a breeder and owner of champions. After hiring future Hall of Fame trainer,

Yonnie Starr Joseph "Yonnie" Starr (August 11, 1905 – March, 1990) was a Canadian Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse trainer about whom the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame says has a "record unmatched in Canadian racing history." Starr began his caree ...

, in 1972 his two-year-old

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

La Prevoyante La Prevoyante (1970–1974) was a Canadian-bred thoroughbred race horse elected to the Racing Halls of Fame in the United States and Canada. Background La Prevoyante was bred and owned by Jean-Louis Lévesque. Her sire was Buckpasser, a son ...

went unbeaten and was voted the United States

Eclipse Award for Outstanding 2-Year-Old Filly The American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a female horse in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971. The award originated in 1936 when both t ...

and the Canadian

Sovereign Award for Horse of the Year The Canadian Horse of the Year is a thoroughbred horse racing honour given annually since 1951 by the Jockey Club of Canada. It is the most prestigious honour in Canadian thoroughbred horse racing. Part of the Sovereign Awards program since 1975, ...

. In 1975 he won the prestigious

Queen's Plate The King's Plate (known as the Queen's Plate between 1860 to 1901 and 1952 to 2022) is Canada's oldest Thoroughbred horse race, having been founded in 1860. It is also the oldest continuously run race in North America. It is run at a distance of ...

with

L'Enjoleur L'Enjoleur (1972 – January 26, 2000) was a Canadian Thoroughbred race horse. Bred and owned by prominent Montreal businessman Jean-Louis Lévesque, L'Enjoleur was sired by U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee, Buckpasser, a son of another Hall o ...

, who won a second consecutive Canadian Horse of the Year award. Levesque won the title for the first time in 1970 with Fanfreluche. In 1976, La Prevoyante was part of the first group of inductees into the

Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame The Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame was established in 1976 to honour those who have made a significant contribution to the sport of harness and Thoroughbred horse racing in Canada. It is located at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. The H ...

. A daughter of

Buckpasser Buckpasser (1963–1978) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who was the 1966 Horse of the Year. His other achievements include 1965 Champion Two-Year-Old, 1966 Champion Three-Year-Old, 1966 Champion Handicap Horse, and 1967 Champi ...

, La Prevoyante was also inducted into the American Racing Hall of Fame in 1995. As well, Lévesque was part of the breeding syndicate that purchased the

Triple Crown Triple Crown may refer to: Sports Horse racing * Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing * Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States) ** Triple Crown Trophy ** Triple Crown Productions * Canadian Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing * Trip ...

champion,

Secretariat Secretariat may refer to: * Secretariat (administrative office) * Secretariat (horse) Secretariat (March 30, 1970 – October 4, 1989), also known as Big Red, was a champion American thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who is the ninth winne ...

for a then-record price of $6.08 million. A friend of prominent racing owners Bud McDougald and

E. P. Taylor Edward Plunket Taylor, CMG (January 29, 1901 – May 14, 1989) was a Canadian business tycoon, investor and philanthropist. He was a famous breeder of Thoroughbred race horses, and a major force behind the evolution of the Canadian horse-racing ...

, in 1973 Lévesque became one of the founding members and a Trustee of the

Jockey Club of Canada The Jockey Club of Canada was formed in 1973 to oversee thoroughbred horse racing in Canada. Based in Toronto, Ontario, the club is responsible for the annual Sovereign Awards program and the Canadian Graded Stakes Committee. Founding members: * C ...

. He was inducted into the

in 1976 and in 1983 was voted the

Sovereign Award {{refimprove, date=October 2021 The Sovereign Award is given annually since 1975 by the Jockey Club of Canada to the outstanding horses and people in Canadian Thoroughbred racing. The most prestigious award for horses is Sovereign Horse of the Y ...

as Canadian horse racing's "Man Of The Year." Beyond horse racing, Lévesque was a driving force behind the creation of the

Canadian Women's Open The CP Women's Open (french: Open féminin du Canada) is a women's professional golf tournament managed by Golf Canada. It has been Canada's national championship tournament since its founding in 1973, and is an official event on the LPGA Tour. ...

golf championship. Known at the time as ''La Canadienne'', it was the first-ever

LPGA The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at the LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekl ...

tournament in Canada. In 1986, Jean-Louis Lévesque was inducted into

Canada's Sports Hall of Fame Canada's Sports Hall of Fame (french: Panthéon des sports canadiens; sometimes referred to as the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame) is a Canadian sports hall of fame and museum in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Dedicated to the history of sports in Canad ...

Philanthropy

As a boy, Jean-Louis Lévesque lost his five-year-old sister to

meningitis Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, headache, and neck stiffness. Other symptoms include confusion or ...

and his eleven-year-old brother to

typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...

. Their deaths profoundly impacted him and as an adult, when he had made his fortune, he became a very substantial contributor to philanthropic causes such as

hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...

s and

medical research Medical research (or biomedical research), also known as experimental medicine, encompasses a wide array of research, extending from "basic research" (also called ''bench science'' or ''bench research''), – involving fundamental scientif ...

. The Lévesque Foundation, established in 1961 and today run by his daughter

Suzanne Lévesque Suzanne may refer to: People * Suzanne (given name), a feminine given name (including a list of people with the name) * S. U. Zanne, pen name of August Vandekerkhove (1838–1923), Belgian writer and inventor * Suzanne, pen name of Renée Méndez ...

, has provided significant financial support to universities and other charitable organizations. Major benefactors include J. Louis Lévesque's alma mater, the

University of Prince Edward Island The University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) is a public university in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada, and the only university in the province. Founded in 1969, the enabling legislation is the ''University Act, R.S.P.E.I 2000.'' H ...

, plus the

, and

Laval Laval means ''The Valley'' in old French and is the name of: People * House of Laval, a French noble family originating from the town of Laval, Mayenne * Laval (surname) Places Belgium * Laval, a village in the municipality of Sainte-Ode, Luxem ...

and Concordia universities in Quebec. He donated to the Florida Heart Research Institute, where he had a winter home, and gave more than $10 million to the

Montreal Heart Institute The Montreal Heart Institute (MHI) (French: ''Institut de Cardiologie de Montréal''), in Montreal, Quebec, is a specialty hospital dedicated to the development of cardiology, which is affiliated with the Université de Montréal. The MHI is found ...

. Other medical institutions that have benefited from his philanthropic foundation include the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, the Royal Victoria Hospital, and the

Montreal General Hospital The Montreal General Hospital (MGH) (french: Hôpital Général de Montréal) is a hospital in Montreal, Quebec, Canada established in the years 1818-1820. The hospital received its charter in 1823. It is currently part of the McGill University ...

. As well, Lévesque provided support for the Gaspé Museum in

Gaspé, Quebec Gaspé is a city at the tip of the Gaspé Peninsula in the Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine region of eastern Quebec in Canada. Gaspé is located about northeast of Quebec City, and east of Rimouski. As of the 2021 Canadian Census, the city had ...

. Included in his numerous laurels, Jean-Louis Lévesque received several honorary degrees from Canadian universities. In 1972 he and his wife were recipients of the Eleanor Roosevelt Humanitarian Award and the

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

made him a Commander of the

Order of St. Gregory the Great The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great ( la, Ordo Sancti Gregorii Magni; it, Ordine di San Gregorio Magno) was established on 1 September 1831, by Pope Gregory XVI, seven months after his election as Pope. The order is one of ...

. In 1976 he was made a member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

and in 1991 an officer of the

National Order of Quebec The National Order of Quebec, termed officially in French as ''l'Ordre national du Québec'', and in English abbreviation as the Order of Quebec, is an order of merit in the Canadian province of Quebec. Instituted in 1984 when Lieutenant Gove ...

. Jean-Louis Lévesque died in Montreal on December 28, 1994, and was interred in the

Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery (french: Cimetière Notre-Dame-des-Neiges) is a rural cemetery located in the borough of Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Montreal, Quebec, Canada which was founded in 1854. The entrance and the grounds run a ...

in Montreal.

References

General

* ''Jean-Louis Lévesque: a biography'' - Jules Belanger (R. Davies Multimedia - 1998) {{DEFAULTSORT:Levesque, J. Louis Canadian racehorse owners and breeders Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductees Canadian stockbrokers Businesspeople from Quebec Stock and commodity market managers Members of the Order of Canada Officers of the National Order of Quebec Sovereign Award winners People from Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine Philanthropists from Quebec Quebec people of Irish descent 1911 births 1994 deaths 20th-century philanthropists Burials at Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery Owners of King's Plate winners