David Fasken
David Milne Fasken (December 31, 1860 – December 2, 1929) was a Canadian lawyer from Wellington County, Ontario, Upper Canada whose wealth, later inherited by his family, formed Fasken Oil & Ranch in 1979, an oil company which currently owns approximately 300,000 acres of land in Texas. In 2015, the family was estimated to have a net worth of $3 billion.[1][2]
David Fasken | |
|---|---|
| Born | David Milne Fasken December 31, 1860 |
| Died | December 2, 1929 (aged 68) |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
| Parent(s) | Robert Fasken Isabel Milne |
Life
David Fasken was born in 1860 the son of Robert Fasken and Isabel Milne. The Fasken family emigrated from Scotland in 1837 to Elora, Ontario. David was the 5th of ten children and went to school in Elora. He graduated from the University of Toronto in 1882 and pursued law. He later worked at the law firm of William Henry Beatty who mentored him.[2]
In 1913, Fasken acquired 226,000 acres for $1.50 an acre in what would later be called Fasken, near Midland, Texas, intending to convert it to a farm. He retired there and ended his law practice in 1919.[3]
Death
Fasken died on December 2, 1929[4] at the age of 68 leaving behind an estate worth $1,792,300, excluding unknown oil reserves on the land. The Supreme Court of Canada, while interpreting his will, commented that his inheritance was "very substantial". The Toronto Daily Star ran the headline "David Fasken, Wealthy Mining Magnate Dies".[5]
Oil was discovered on the property leading to the creation of the Fasken Oil & Ranch company in 1979.[1]
References
- "Fasken family". Forbes. 2015-07-01. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
- C. Ian Kyer. "Biography – FASKEN, DAVID – Volume XV (1921-1930)". Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
- "Permian hyperbole". The Economist. 2016-11-05. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
- J. Phillips; R. Roy McMurtry; John T. Saywell (18 September 2008). Essays in the History of Canadian Law: A Tribute to Peter N. Oliver. University of Toronto Press. pp. 713–. ISBN 978-1-4426-9320-3.
- Carol Wilton (15 December 1996). Inside the Law: Canadian Law Firms in Historical Perspective. University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division. pp. 209–. ISBN 978-1-4426-5128-9.