Robert Dollar
Toronto Daily Star, April 4 1930
Robert Dollar (1844-1932), who had the perfect surname for a wealthy industrialist, managed to hold out for two more years after the illness reported here. Dollar was born in Scotland (so perhaps his surname should have been Pound?) and his family moved to Canada when he was in his early teens.
Dollar started his working life as a logger and then established a series of lumber camps. He moved to California in 1888 and bought more lumber camps, branching into shipping in the 1890s. By the time of his death, his various steamship lines transported passengers and freight around the earth.
However, when he passed away, his company went bankrupt. This was partly due to the Depression and partly because Dollar was a staunch Republican, which didn't win him any friends in the Franklin Roosevelt presidency. To resolve the bankruptcy, Dollar's son Stanley turned almost all of the company's voting stock over to the Maritime Commission.
Created September 19, 2025.