Charles Fleetford Sise | |
|---|---|
 Charles Fleetford Sise and his wife | |
| Born | 27 September 1834 Portsmouth, New Hampshire, United States |
| Died | 9 April 1918 (aged 83) |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Children | Charles Fleetford Sise Jr. Edward Fleetford Sise Paul Fleetford Sise |
Charles Fleetford Sise Sr. (27 September 1834 – 9 April 1918) was an American-born Canadian businessman and one of the first presidents of Bell Canada. He was also part of its first board of directors, and that of the Northern Electric and Manufacturing Company (later known as Nortel), the telephone company's equipment manufacturer, from 1895 to 1918.
He had formerly been a "hard nosed" sea captain before being commissioned as an agent by the newly formed National Bell Telephone Company of Boston, Massachusetts, to help lead its incipient Canadian division.[1]
From the time he was hired as an agent to Bell Canada in 1880 until his death in 1918 he was the company's single greatest advocate and leader, also overseeing its necessary divestiture of territories in the Maritime Provinces in 1887–89 and from the Prairie Provinces during 1908–09. His moulding influence and direction during those many years was extensive, pivotal and decisive, with his influence ultimately enduring until the last of his proteges retired in 1944.
- ^ Collins, Larry; Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Electricity: The Magic Medium, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Canadian Region, 1985, p. 4.