Famous Freemason - Edwin Harold Ballard

I'll propose anything where I can make a buck.

One of the most polarizing owners in NHL history Harold Ballard was a Canadian businessman and sportsman. Ballard was an owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the as well as their home arena, Maple Leaf Gardens.

A member of the Leafs organization from 1940 and a senior executive from 1957, he became part-owner of the team in 1961 and was majority owner from February 1972 until his death in 1990. He was also the owner of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League for 10 years from 1978 to 1988, winning a Grey Cup championship in 1986.

Ballard left a mixed legacy. Convicted of fraud in 1972, he was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1977. Legendary for his stinginess, vindictiveness and autocratic temperament, he exhibited a strong philanthropy in making the Gardens available for many benevolent functions and was honored by the Ontario Hockey Association, the City of Toronto and the Canadian Rehabilitation Council for the Disabled, among others, for his generosity.

Bro. Ballard was raised in Corinthian No. 481, in Newmarket Ontario.