Andrew Ross (Barton Street Arena)

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Andrew Ross, businessman; (born: 1857 in Hamilton, Ontario Canada). married and had one daughter and one son. died 29 December 1941 at Hamilton, Ontario, buried in Hamilton Cemetery.

Andrew Ross attended Hamilton Central School before entering the business world. In 1888 he founded a carriage and wagon factory that expanded several times in the years that followed, occupying, by 1912, numbers 281 through 288 on King Street East. With the advent of the motor vehicle Ross branched into trucks, supplying the Canadian, Dominion and American Express Companies with trucks and wagons by 1910, as well as providing many Hamilton businesses with delivery vehicles. He operated a garage. Ross suffered a severe blow in 1919 when a fire in the shop resulted in losses of $44,233, but he carried on, not retiring until 1930.

A Labor News article from 1912 reveals where Ross' political sympathies lay: 'Mr.Ross is a most democratic workman and always on the job along with his men, never happier than when his hands and face are grimy and full of grease or paint, tending strictly to business. He has always been a friend to labor and all matters pertaining to the interests of the common people.'

Ross took an interest in the entertainment of his fellow-citizens. He lent his support to the building of the Tivoli theatre and to the Barton Street Arena, and was involved in professional hockey (Hamilton Tigers of the NHL) and softball. In 1905 the Scoundrel softball team became world championsunder his management. Little is known of his home life. He lived at 81 Victoria Avenue North, from where his funeral was held. He was survived by his children, John W. and Edna E Ross.