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King, Vernon Bickle
1903 - 1977
Vern King, born in Woodstock, was known as the "Industrial King" in his time. In 1925, he earned a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Toronto. Vern founded a Toronto company called Truck Engineering of Canada. He later moved it to Woodstock, and started producing trailers. By 1939, the firm had rented space in the Massey-Harris factory on Dundas Street but, with the onset of WWII, the space was needed for production of artillery shells. Vern responded by rapidly constructing a building on the Southeast corner of Henry and Wellington Street South and built radar vans for the army. In 1944 he changed the name to Truck Engineering Ltd. Vern bought the manufacturing rights from his uncle's bankrupt company and changed the name to King-Seagrave Ltd. In 1947, Vern, along with investors, formed Timberland Machines Ltd. They produced logging equipment and a conductor stringing system for installing and tightening power lines. The company's Timber-Skidder, designed in the 1950s, was to replace horses, mules and tracked vehicles used in forestry. Timberjack Inc. was created in 1966 to concentrate on forestry equipment production. Vern's stately house was situated near Hwy 59 north of Woodstock across from the Craigowan Golf and Country Club. In 1967, he moved the Ionic columns and entrance from the old Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce branch at Dundas and Graham Streets to his home. Vern is buried in Oxford Memorial Park Cemetery, just west of Woodstock.
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