Norman McLeod Paterson, KGStJ, DCL, LLD (August 3, 1883 – August 10, 1983) was a Canadian businessman and politician.

Life and career

Born in

Portage la Prairie, Manitoba Portage la Prairie () is a small city in the Central Plains Region of Manitoba, Canada. As of 2016, the population was 13,304 and the land area of the city was . Portage la Prairie is approximately west of Winnipeg, along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

, the son of Hugh Savigny Paterson and Ella Snider, he started working with the Manitoba Railway and Canal Company in 1897. Paterson later worked for the

Great Northern Railway of Canada Most transportation historians date the history of Canada's railways as beginning on February 25, 1832, with the incorporation of British North America's first steam-powered railway, the Champlain and St. Lawrence Railroad. This line opened for tr ...

as a telegrapher, eventually becoming a purchasing agent In 1903, he started working with his father in the grain business and founded a firm, N.M Paterson and Company, in 1908. Later, he started Paterson Steamships Limited. The two firms later became N.M. Paterson and Sons Limited, which is still run by the Paterson family.Norman McLeod Paterson biography
patersonfoundation.ca; accessed 14 March 2018. According to the Manitoba marriage registration (1915-176082), Paterson married Eleanor Margaret Macdonald in Winnipeg on June 2, 1915. He was summoned to the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the B ...

in 1940, representing the senatorial division of

Milton, Ontario Milton (Canada 2016 Census, 2016 census population 110,128) is a town in Southern Ontario, Canada, and part of the Regional Municipality of Halton, Halton Region in the Greater Toronto Area. Between 2001 and 2011, Milton was the fastest growing mun ...

. A

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

, he resigned in 1981 just before his 98th birthday. He was made a Knight of the

Order of St. John The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic military order. It was headqu ...

in 1945. From 1965 to 1971, he was the first chancellor of

Lakehead University Lakehead University is a public research university with campuses in Thunder Bay and Orillia, Ontario, Canada. Lakehead University, shortened to 'Lakehead U', is non-denominational and provincially supported. It has undergraduate programs, grad ...

. He also served on the Board of Directors of

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to serve returning World ...

in Ottawa. The

Norman Paterson School of International Affairs The Norman Paterson School of International Affairs (NPSIA ( )) is a professional school of international affairs at Carleton University that was founded in 1965. The school is based at Richcraft Hall on Carleton's campus in Ottawa, Ontario, Ca ...

was established in 1965 at Carleton University with a grant of $400,000 from Paterson. Paterson died in his sleep at his home in Ottawa on August 10, 1983, a week after his 100th birthday. In 1970, he established a private charitable foundation, The Paterson Foundation, which provides grants to community organizations in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario.

References

External links

*
Paterson Grain

Paterson Foundation

Memorable Manitobans: Hugh Savigny Paterson (1855-1936)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paterson, Norman 1883 births 1983 deaths 20th-century Canadian businesspeople Canadian centenarians Men centenarians Canadian senators from Ontario Canadian university and college chancellors Knights of Grace of the Order of St John Liberal Party of Canada senators People from Portage la Prairie