Hiram Walker

Hiram Walker
Hiram Walker, from a painting that hangs in Willistead Manor, Windsor, Ontario
Born(1816-07-04)July 4, 1816
East Douglas, Massachusetts, US
DiedJanuary 12, 1899(1899-01-12) (aged 82)
Detroit, Michigan, US
NationalityAmerican
Known forfounder of Canadian Club whisky
SpouseMary Abigail Williams
ChildrenElizabeth Walker, Jennie Walker, Willis Ephraim Walker, Edward Chandler Walker, Franklin Hiram Walker, Alfred Walker, James Harrington Walker
Parent(s)Willis Walker and Ruth Buffum
Signature

Hiram Walker (July 4, 1816 – January 12, 1899) was an American entrepreneur and founder of the Hiram Walker and Sons Ltd. distillery in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Walker was born in East Douglas, Massachusetts, and moved to Detroit in 1838.[1] He purchased land across the Detroit River, just east of what is Windsor, Ontario, and established a distillery in 1858 in what would become Walkerville, Ontario.[2] Walker began selling his whisky as Hiram Walker's Club Whisky, in containers that were "clearly marked" and he used a process to make his whisky that was vastly different from all other distillers.[3]

It became very popular, angering American distillers, who forced the US government to pass a law requiring that all foreign whiskeys state their country of origin on the label.[4] From this point forward, Hiram Walker's Canadian Club whisky was Canada's top export whisky.[4] He established and maintained the company town that grew around his distillery, exercising planning and control over every facet of the town, from public works to religious services to police and fire control.[5]

The Hiram Walker & Sons Distillery remained in the Walker family until 1926 when they sold it to Harry C. Hatch for $15,000,000, equivalent to $258,157,895 in 2023.[6] While the company has gone through several owners and is now part of Pernod Ricard, the Canadian Club brand is owned by Suntory Global Spirits, a subsidiary of Suntory Holdings of Japan. Canadian Club whisky is still produced at the distillery site Walker founded.

  1. ^ "Walkerville in 1894", Detroit Sunday News-Tribune, June 3, 1894 Rpr. in Casey, Kevin B., ed. (Spring 1961), "Walkerville in 1894: A View of Hiram Walker through Contemporary Eyes", Spirit: 9–11.
  2. ^ "The Legacy of Hiram Walker: 'Born on the Fourth of July'", Willistead Classic: 10, January 1, 1994
  3. ^ Millman, Brock (December 1, 1993), "The Walker Legac", Windsor Life Holiday Issue: 17
  4. ^ a b Brown, Lorraine (January 1, 1995), Canadian Whiskey — The Unsung Story, Willistead Classic, p. 11 — Rpt from. Brown, Lorraine (1994), 200 Years of Tradition: The Story of Canadian Whisky, Markham, Ont.: Fitzhenry & Whiteside
  5. ^ Essex County Sketches, Essex County Tourist Association, 1947
  6. ^ "Business: Business Notes, Jan. 10, 1927". Time. 1927-01-10. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved 2023-01-12.