Thomas Ahearn
Encyclopedia
Thomas Ahearn, PC
(June 24, 1855 – June 28, 1938) was a Canadian
inventor and businessman. Ahearn, a native of Ottawa
, was instrumental in the success a vast streetcar system that was once in Ottawa, the Ottawa Electric Railway
, and was the first chairman of Canada's Federal District Commission in 1927. He held several patents related to electrical items and headed companies which competed for decades with Ottawa Hydro as providers for electricity in Ottawa. Ahearn co-founded the Ottawa Car Company
, manufacturer of streetcars for Canadian markets.
He was born in the Lebreton Flats
area of Ottawa in 1855. He started as a messenger in the Chaudière office of the Montreal Telegraph Company (located in J. R. Booth
's office). Within the year he was promoted to the company's Sparks Street office. At 19, went to New York City and worked for two years at Western Union Telegraph Company. He returned to Ottawa and became chief operator for Montreal Telegraph Company. He became a manager of the Bell Telephone Company
office in Ottawa in 1880.
In 1881, he founded the firm of Ahearn and Soper, electrical contractors, with Warren Soper, former manager of Dominion Telegraph Company's local office. He formed Chaudière Electric Light and Power Company in 1887 and he later merged it with other companies which created the Ottawa Electric Company in 1894.
In 1892, he filed patents for both an "electric oven" and a "system of warming cars by means of electrically heated water". The use of this invention that year to prepare a meal which he delivered by streetcar to the Windsor Hotel caused the Ottawa Journal to say "...everything had been cooked by electricity, the first instance on record..." Thomas Ahearn filed eleven Canadian patents in all.
He was founder and president of the Ottawa Electric Railway Company, which provided electric streetcar
service in the city and had the first streetcars with electric heaters (a device he patented). After running as a vast and very successful private operation for over half a century, it was later taken over by the Ottawa Transportation Commission
. He, with Ahearn and William Wylie in September 1893, founded the Ottawa Car Manufacturing Company
which manufactured streetcars.
On June 23, 1906, he was appointed as director and elected president of Ottawa Gas Company.
In 1908 he formed a holding company called called the Ottawa Light, Heat and Power Company, Limited, which wholly owned Ottawa Gas Company (which Ahearn and Soper bought) and Ottawa Electric Company. In this way, the private sector continued to compete with Ottawa Hydro
for decades.
In 1912, as well as being vice-president of Wallace Realty Company, Limited, and director of Canadian Westinghouse Company, Limited, Thomas Ahearn was listed as:
In 1927, he was placed by Prime Minister MacKenzie King
as the first chairman of the Federal District Commission, the predecessor to the National Capital Commission
. There he had a five year term ending in 1932. In this capacity, much of Ottawa's parkway network was developed, as well as a the Champlain Bridge
across the Ottawa River
. He was named to the Queen's Privy Council for Canada
in 1928.
Thomas Ahearn died June 28, 1938. He is interred in Beechwood Cemetery
.
Their principal contracts have been with the C. P. R., Bell Telephone Company, Mackay-Bennett Cable Company, of New York, North American Telegraph Company.
In the mid-1890s, they moved to 56 Sparks Street from 70 Sparks Street. In 1926, they built the Ottawa Electric Building (Albert Ewan, Architect) which still stands on 56 Sparks.
. She was identified with the Local Council of Women, and the Woman's Canadian Historical Society. The couple lived at Buena Vista, 584 Maria Street, Ottawa.
Thomas Ahearn's son Frank
would become the owner of the Ottawa Auditorium and the Ottawa Senators
professional ice hockey
team.
Ahearn's other child, Lilias Ahearn Southam(1888-1962) married Harry Southam in 1909. Harry Southam, publisher of the Ottawa Citizen
, was part of the Southam newspaper empire.
Queen's Privy Council for Canada
The Queen's Privy Council for Canada ), sometimes called Her Majesty's Privy Council for Canada or simply the Privy Council, is the full group of personal consultants to the monarch of Canada on state and constitutional affairs, though responsible government requires the sovereign or her viceroy,...
(June 24, 1855 – June 28, 1938) was a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
inventor and businessman. Ahearn, a native of Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, was instrumental in the success a vast streetcar system that was once in Ottawa, the Ottawa Electric Railway
Ottawa Electric Railway
Ottawa Electric Railway Company was a streetcar public transit system in the city of Ottawa, Canada, part of the electric railway streetcars which operated between 1891 and 1959...
, and was the first chairman of Canada's Federal District Commission in 1927. He held several patents related to electrical items and headed companies which competed for decades with Ottawa Hydro as providers for electricity in Ottawa. Ahearn co-founded the Ottawa Car Company
Ottawa Car Company
Ottawa Car Company was a builder of streetcars for the Canadian market and was founded in Ottawa, Ontario, in 1891. The plant was located at Kent and Slater Streets, a short distance from Parliament Hill...
, manufacturer of streetcars for Canadian markets.
He was born in the Lebreton Flats
Lebreton Flats
LeBreton Flats is a neighbourhood in Ottawa, Canada. It lies to the west of Centretown neighbourhood, and to the north of Centretown West with "Nanny Goat Hill" as the dividing line...
area of Ottawa in 1855. He started as a messenger in the Chaudière office of the Montreal Telegraph Company (located in J. R. Booth
John Rudolphus Booth
John Rudolphus Booth was a Canadian lumber and railway baron. He controlled logging rights for large tracts of forest land in central Ontario, and built a railway to extract his logs; and from Ottawa through to Vermont to export lumber and grain to the United States and...
's office). Within the year he was promoted to the company's Sparks Street office. At 19, went to New York City and worked for two years at Western Union Telegraph Company. He returned to Ottawa and became chief operator for Montreal Telegraph Company. He became a manager of the Bell Telephone Company
Bell Canada
Bell Canada is a major Canadian telecommunications company. Including its subsidiaries such as Bell Aliant, Northwestel, Télébec, and NorthernTel, it is the incumbent local exchange carrier for telephone and DSL Internet services in most of Canada east of Manitoba and in the northern territories,...
office in Ottawa in 1880.
In 1881, he founded the firm of Ahearn and Soper, electrical contractors, with Warren Soper, former manager of Dominion Telegraph Company's local office. He formed Chaudière Electric Light and Power Company in 1887 and he later merged it with other companies which created the Ottawa Electric Company in 1894.
In 1892, he filed patents for both an "electric oven" and a "system of warming cars by means of electrically heated water". The use of this invention that year to prepare a meal which he delivered by streetcar to the Windsor Hotel caused the Ottawa Journal to say "...everything had been cooked by electricity, the first instance on record..." Thomas Ahearn filed eleven Canadian patents in all.
He was founder and president of the Ottawa Electric Railway Company, which provided electric streetcar
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
service in the city and had the first streetcars with electric heaters (a device he patented). After running as a vast and very successful private operation for over half a century, it was later taken over by the Ottawa Transportation Commission
Ottawa Transportation Commission
Ottawa Transportation Commission was the public transit operator for the city of Ottawa from 1948 until the creation of OC Transpo in 1973.OTC took over streetcar operations from the Ottawa Electric Railway Company, but they were gradually abandoned for trolley bus and bus operations...
. He, with Ahearn and William Wylie in September 1893, founded the Ottawa Car Manufacturing Company
Ottawa Car Company
Ottawa Car Company was a builder of streetcars for the Canadian market and was founded in Ottawa, Ontario, in 1891. The plant was located at Kent and Slater Streets, a short distance from Parliament Hill...
which manufactured streetcars.
On June 23, 1906, he was appointed as director and elected president of Ottawa Gas Company.
In 1908 he formed a holding company called called the Ottawa Light, Heat and Power Company, Limited, which wholly owned Ottawa Gas Company (which Ahearn and Soper bought) and Ottawa Electric Company. In this way, the private sector continued to compete with Ottawa Hydro
Hydro Ottawa
Hydro Ottawa is an electricity distribution company based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. As of 2010, Hydro Ottawa provides power to over 296,000 customers in Ottawa and Casselman.-History:...
for decades.
In 1912, as well as being vice-president of Wallace Realty Company, Limited, and director of Canadian Westinghouse Company, Limited, Thomas Ahearn was listed as:
- Ottawa Electric Railway Company, president
- Ottawa Electric Company, president
- Ottawa Car Company, Limited, president
- Ottawa Gas Company, president
- Ottawa Light, Heat and Power Company, Limited, president
- Ahearn and Soper, Limited, vice-president
In 1927, he was placed by Prime Minister MacKenzie King
William Lyon Mackenzie King
William Lyon Mackenzie King, PC, OM, CMG was the dominant Canadian political leader from the 1920s through the 1940s. He served as the tenth Prime Minister of Canada from December 29, 1921 to June 28, 1926; from September 25, 1926 to August 7, 1930; and from October 23, 1935 to November 15, 1948...
as the first chairman of the Federal District Commission, the predecessor to the National Capital Commission
National Capital Commission
The National Capital Commission , is a Canadian Crown corporation that administers the federally owned lands and buildings in Canada's National Capital Region, including Ottawa, Ontario and Gatineau, Quebec.The NCC was created in 1959, replacing the Federal District Commission , which had been...
. There he had a five year term ending in 1932. In this capacity, much of Ottawa's parkway network was developed, as well as a the Champlain Bridge
Champlain Bridge (Ottawa)
The Champlain Bridge crosses the Ottawa River about west of Parliament Hill, joining the communities of Ottawa, Ontario and Gatineau, Quebec. It is the westernmost link between the two cities....
across the Ottawa River
Ottawa River
The Ottawa River is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. For most of its length, it now defines the border between these two provinces.-Geography:...
. He was named to the Queen's Privy Council for Canada
Queen's Privy Council for Canada
The Queen's Privy Council for Canada ), sometimes called Her Majesty's Privy Council for Canada or simply the Privy Council, is the full group of personal consultants to the monarch of Canada on state and constitutional affairs, though responsible government requires the sovereign or her viceroy,...
in 1928.
Thomas Ahearn died June 28, 1938. He is interred in Beechwood Cemetery
Beechwood Cemetery
Beechwood Cemetery is the National Cemetery of Canada. Because it is located in Ottawa, Ontario, the nation's capital, it is the burial site for a number of statesmen as well as a large number of mayors of the city. A woodland cemetery founded in 1873, it is 160 acres and is the largest cemetery...
.
Ahearn and Soper
Ahearn and Soper is an Ottawa company formed as an electrical engineering and contracting business in 1881 by Thomas Ahearn and Warren Young Soper, former manager of Dominion Telegraph Company's local office. Both men were working for Montreal Telegraph in Ottawa on March 13, 1873. The two founders were responsible for the creation of many companies in the fields of communications, heat, light and power, perhaps most notable, the creation of the Ottawa Electric Railway Company, a massive streetcar system in Ottawa, and early electricity providers in Ottawa.Their principal contracts have been with the C. P. R., Bell Telephone Company, Mackay-Bennett Cable Company, of New York, North American Telegraph Company.
In the mid-1890s, they moved to 56 Sparks Street from 70 Sparks Street. In 1926, they built the Ottawa Electric Building (Albert Ewan, Architect) which still stands on 56 Sparks.
Family
Thomas Ahearn's first marriage was to Lilias Mackay Fleck. In 1892, in his second marriage, he married Margaret Howitt (likely Margaret Howit Fleck). Margaret was the daughter of Alexander Fleck, President of the Vulcan Iron Works Co., Ottawa, and his wife, Lilias Walker. Margaret was born in Montreal, and was educated at the McGill Model School and at Bute House. The couple travelled in foreign countries with their family. She served as the President of the Victorian Order of NursesVictorian Order of Nurses
The Victorian Order of Nurses is a non-profit charitable organization founded in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada on January 29, 1897 created as a gift for Queen Victoria for the purposes of home care and social services. It is registered as a charity the Canada Revenue Agency, charity number...
. She was identified with the Local Council of Women, and the Woman's Canadian Historical Society. The couple lived at Buena Vista, 584 Maria Street, Ottawa.
Thomas Ahearn's son Frank
T. Franklin Ahearn
Thomas Franklin Ahearn or Frank Ahearn was a NHL hockey club owner and a Canadian Member of Parliament. He was survived by his wife Norah, who lived until January 20, 1966.Mr...
would become the owner of the Ottawa Auditorium and the Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...
professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team.
Ahearn's other child, Lilias Ahearn Southam(1888-1962) married Harry Southam in 1909. Harry Southam, publisher of the Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa Citizen
The Ottawa Citizen is an English-language daily newspaper owned by Postmedia Network in Ottawa, Canada. According to the Canadian Newspaper Association, the paper had a 2008 weekly circulation of 900,197.- History :...
, was part of the Southam newspaper empire.