John Osborn Williams
John Osborn Williams (28 March 1886 – 6 July 1963) was the owner of the logging and pit prop exporting business known as The Labrador Development Company limited based in Port Hope Simpson, Newfoundland and Labrador from 1934 to 1948. Early life Williams was born at 46 George Street, Cardiff, Wales, his parents' home, and was the youngest son of Silas and Mary Williams. He was one of eight children and known as "Jack" within the family. He left school at age 14 in 1900 and entered the timber exporting business. "Jayo" as he was usually known, like two of his brothers Hiram and Arthur, became a commercial clerk at the age of fifteen. The family's heavy industrial and clerical occupational experience was the background for at least two other logging, trading, and shipping agency companies he was to set up. In 1908, at 22 years of age, he moved to work for Evans and Reed, Cardiff coal exporters and importers of pit props. In 1914 during the First World War, he worked in the Baltic area, and in August of that year, he went to Montreal, spending September to December 1914 in Dominion of Newfoundland. From the end of the war, he sought to develop his business interests on the island. In 1921, he obtained £10,000 backing from Franklin Thomas and Company, Cardiff coal importer, to help him set up J. O. Williams Company in 1925. However, the liquidation of the British and North American Trading Company in which Williams had shares bankrupted him. Development of the Labrador area Before the company arrived at the present day site of Port Hope Simpson, certain events had taken place. It was on board the S.S. Sylvia en route to St. John's, Newfoundland from City of Halifax, Nova Scotia that Williams first discussed his ambitions for the Labrador with Sir John Hope Simpson, Commissioner of Natural Resources and Acting Commissioner of Justice 1934–36, and Thomas Lodge, Commissioner of Public Utilities from 1934 to 1937. He won them over with his enthusiasm, optimism and experience and convinced them he was just the sort of entrepreneurial man they were looking for. For their part, they could not believe their good luck in having met him. They viewed Williams as somebody who could help them make an impact in their new posts. Lodge described Williams to The Dominions Office in London as 1/3 visionary, 1/3 speculator and 1/3 businessman. However, time would tell that Simpson and Lodge had made a grave error of judgment about entering into a business relationship with Williams. In June 1934 the first party of managerial and administrative staff landed at the site on the Alexis River. Williams had hired 520 men; southern Inuit men from nearby communities and unemployed men from the island of Newfoundland who came on government passes to work. He showed that some sort of permanent employment in addition to the cod fishery was possible in the area, and even though he brought south Labrador Inuit and