‘A true New Brunswicker’: Business titan Arthur Irving dies at 93

Article content

New Brunswick billionaire industrialist Arthur Irving, who grew the Saint John refinery into what’s now the largest in Canada, has died at the age of 93.

The former Irving Oil president and chairman, who served with the company for 73 years, died Monday surrounded by his wife Sandra and his daughter Sarah, according to a company press release. At the time of his death, Arthur Irving was chairman emeritus of Irving Oil after stepping down as board chair last fall amid a still ongoing strategic review of Irving Oil’s future.

Tributes quickly poured in Monday for Irving, a lifelong Saint Johner who oversaw the growth of his father K.C. Irving’s regional oil company into a multinational energy firm with operations in the northeastern United States and Ireland.

“(Arthur) brought endless energy and dedication to serving customers and building the business,” Premier Blaine Higgs, who worked as a senior executive for Irving Oil until his retirement in 2010, said in a statement.

“Through it all, he was a New Brunswicker first and proud of his roots.”

Family and friends say Arthur Irving’s legacy extends far beyond his business achievements to his philanthropic work and his lifelong championing of New Brunswick.

“Arthur was a true New Brunswicker, a true friend,” said Université de Moncton professor Donald Savoie, who wrote a 2020 book chronicling the history of Irving Oil.

“(Arthur’s) commitment to our region was deeply felt. He gave far more to our province than it is known. He grew Irving Oil to what it is today and he did it not from Toronto, New York, Dallas but right here in New Brunswick.”

In 1951, Arthur Irving joined the family oil business, working alongside his father K.C., his older brother Jim (J.K.) and his younger brother John (Jack). By the 1970s, when he retired, K.C. Irving had amassed a conglomerate of forestry, transportation, oil and gas, construction and media companies. Those would eventually be split amongst the three sons.

K.C. Irving instilled in his sons the “importance of looking after the customer,” according to John K.F. Irving, the nephew of Arthur Irving and the son of the late Jack Irving.

Arthur Irving, who became president of the family oil company in 1972, was known for shaking the hand of every person he met. He could also quickly recall the names of both customers and employees alike.

“(My uncle) was incredibly passionate, incredibly committed and anything he took on he gave 110 per cent,” said John K.F. Irving, president of Ocean Capital Holdings Limited, which has holdings in broadcasting, real estate, construction, industrial distribution, and service and maintenance sectors.

Both Ocean Capital Holdings Limited and J.D. Irving, Limited issued statements Monday on the death of Arthur Irving on behalf of their workforces.

“(Arthur’s) tremendous contributions to (Irving Oil), our hometown of Saint John, New Brunswick, and all of Atlantic Canada will have a lasting impact,” his brother J.K. Irving, chairman of J.D. Irving, Limited, said in a statement.

In her own statement, Saint John Mayor Donna Reardon called Irving’s legacy in the city as “immeasurable.”

“Arthur’s vision, leadership and unwavering commitment to Saint John have left a permanent mark on our city’s landscape,” she said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

“Arthur touched countless lives and will continue to inspire generations to come.”

‘Deeply committed philanthropist’

In addition to his business acumen, Arthur Irving was a “deeply committed philanthropist” to environmental and post-secondary education causes, according to Savoie.

“There is a side to Arthur Irving that is less well known,” Savoie wrote in an email to Brunswick News Monday. “He was a private person, always shying away from the media. This is unfortunate because he was an engaging and energetic person with a sharp wit and a keen sense of humour.

“He did not limit his energy to business, bringing it to all his activities.”

Irving served for 30 years on the board of Ducks Unlimited and for two years as its president. An alumnus of Acadia University, Irving, who served as the school’s chancellor for 14 years, spearheaded the creation of the Beaubassin Research Station in Aulac, southeast of Sackville, in 2009 through a partnership between the university and Ducks Unlimited.

Only seven years earlier, Irving, along with his brothers, set up the K.C. Irving Environmental Science Centre and the Harriet Irving Botanical Gardens at Acadia University in honour of their late parents.

Irving and his wife Sandra have also helped individual students through scholarships at the University of New Brunswick, St. Thomas University and Université de Moncton, to name just a few schools.

Irving leaves behind his wife Sandra and his children, Sarah, Arthur Leigh, Jennifer, Emily and Kenneth.