John Angus "Bud" McDougald (March 14, 1908 – March 15, 1978) was a leading

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

businessman and owner of

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 ...

racehorses 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 pr ...

. In 1975, journalist Peter Newman wrote that, "He may well be the least known and most admired member of the anadianbusiness Establishment. Without question, he is the most powerful." Born in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

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 ...

, he was universally known by the

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

, "Bud". The son of a wealthy

investment banker Investment banking pertains to certain activities of a financial services company or a corporate division that consist in advisory-based financial transactions on behalf of individuals, corporations, and governments. Traditionally associated with ...

, after working 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 ...

for

Dominion Securities RBC Dominion Securities was the brand used by Royal Bank of Canada for full service brokerage services, primarily in Canada, and formed part of RBC's Wealth Management and Capital Markets divisions. Today, RBC Dominion Securities is known as RBC Ca ...

, in 1945 Bud McDougald teamed up with

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 ...

to establish Taylor, McDougald and Company Ltd. which would lead to his rise in the Taylor-controlled

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 ...

Argus Corporation The Argus Corporation was an investment holding company based in Toronto, Ontario. During the 1960s and 1970s, it was the most powerful and best known conglomerate in Canada, at one time controlling the companies making up 10 percent of all shar ...

. While McDougald would become involved in the sport of Thoroughbred racing, E. P. Taylor would devote much of his time to building his very successful

Windfields Farm Windfields Farm was a six square kilometre (1,500 acre) Thoroughbred horse breeding farm that was founded by businessman E. P. Taylor in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. Origin The first stable and breeding operation of E. P. Taylor originated w ...

. That situation saw McDougald rise within the business to where he was appointed chairman of 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 ...

and president of Argus. He was largely responsible for making it one of Canada's dominant business conglomerates that had controlling interest in Dominion Stores,

Hollinger Mines The Hollinger Gold Mine was discovered on October 9, 1909, by Benny Hollinger, who found the gold-bearing quartz dike that later became known as Hollinger Mines. With his friend, professional prospector Alex Gillies, Hollinger had travelled to the ...

Massey Ferguson Massey Ferguson Limited is an American agricultural machinery manufacturer. The company was established in 1953 through the merger of farm equipment makers Massey-Harris of Canada and the Ferguson Company of the United Kingdom. It was based in T ...

Standard Broadcasting Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Heraldic flag, Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology) ...

Crown Trust The Crown Trust Company was an Ontario-based firm that operated in most of Canada prior to its bankruptcy, along with several other trusts, in 1983. The bankruptcies occurred when a major Canadian recession drove down speculative real estate val ...

and

Domtar Domtar Corporation is an American company that manufactures and markets wood fiber-based paper and pulp product. The company operates pulp and paper mills in Windsor, Quebec, Dryden, Ontario, Kamloops, British Columbia, Ashdown, Arkansas, Hawesv ...

. McDougald was one of the major biographies in Peter C. Newman's 1975 book, ''

The Canadian Establishment ''The Canadian Establishment'' is a series of books published in Canada by economic journalist Peter C. Newman Peter Charles Newman (born May 10, 1929) is a Canadian journalist and writer. Life and career Born in Vienna, Austria, Newman emigr ...

''. McDougald died in

Palm Beach, Florida Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from several nearby cities including West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach by the Intracoas ...

in 1978. Two months after his death his widow and sister-in-law signed documents that gave

Conrad Black Conrad Moffat Black, Baron Black of Crossharbour (born 25 August 1944), is a Canadian-born British former newspaper publisher, businessman, and writer. His father was businessman George Montegu Black II, who had significant holdings in Canadi ...

control of

Ravelston Corporation Ravelston Corporation Limited was a Canadian holding company that was largely controlled by Conrad Black and business partner David Radler. At one time, it held a majority stake in Hollinger Inc., once one of the largest media corporations in the w ...

which in turn controlled Argus Corporation.

Thoroughbred racing

Introduced to the sport by E. P. Taylor, McDougald was a founding member 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 and his wife owned a number of

racehorses, the most successful of which was

Nijinsky's Secret Nijinsky's Secret (foaled 1978 in Kentucky) is a Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in France, Canada, and the United States. Background Nijinsky's Secret was bred by Oxford Stable, he was a son of the 1970 English Triple Crown champion, Niji ...

References

* Newman, Peter C. ''The Canadian Establishment'' (1975)

McClelland and Stewart McClelland & Stewart Limited is a Canadian publishing company. It is owned by Random House of Canada, Penguin Random House of Canada, a branch of Penguin Random House, the international book publishing division of German media giant Bertelsmann. ...

* Newman, Peter C. ''The Canadian Establishment, Volume Two: The Acquisitors'' (1981) McClelland and Stewart * Francis, Diane ''Controlling Interest: Who Owns Canada'' (1986)

Macmillan of Canada Macmillan of Canada was a Canadian publishing house. The company was founded in 1905 as the Canadian arm of the English publisher Macmillan. At that time it was known as the "Macmillan Company of Canada Ltd." In the course of its existence the na ...

North York Council report on Bud McDougald and his Estate

December 20, 2007 ''Canadian Business'' magazine article titled ''The Rich 100: Historic fortunes''
{{DEFAULTSORT:McDougald, John A. 1908 births 1978 deaths Businesspeople from Toronto Canadian racehorse owners and breeders Canadian stockbrokers St. Andrew's College (Aurora) alumni