V. W. Bro. Dana Harris Porter
(1901-1967)
By R. W. Bro. Paul Skazin
V.W. Bro. Porter was installed as Master of Ionic Lodge in December 1941. He was appointed Grand Senior Deacon in 1952. Dana Porter was born in Toronto on January 14, 1901, son of Dr. George D. Porter, medical director of Harthouse and Lena Harris. He was educated at the University of Toronto (B.A. 1921) and Balloil College, Oxford (M.A. 1923). He was called to the Ontario Bar in July 1923 and was a member of the law firm of Fennel, Porter & Davis, where he specialized in Litigation, until 1944.
Entering politics as a conservative, he represented the constituents of Toronto St. George in the Ontario Legislature for five consecutive terms and was, for fourteen years, an influential member of the Provincial cabinet.
He served under 3 Premiers as: Minister of Planning and Development 1944–48; Minister of Education 1948-51; Provincial Secretary 1948-49; Attorney General 1949-55 and Treasurer of Ontario 1955-58.
Prime Minister John Diefenbaker appointed him Chief Justice of the Ontario Court of Appeal on February 1, 1958.
He instituted in 1947, in the face of federal objection, the airlift that flew 10,000 British immigrants to the Province. In 1950 he introduced the bill that legalized Sunday sports in Ontario. In 1953 he received the B’nai B’rith Humanitarian Award. He headed the Royal Commission on Banking and Finance from 1961 to 1964. In 1964 he delivered a lifting a ban on the novel “Fanny Hill”.
He was installed as the First Chancellor of the University of Waterloo in June 1960 and the Library is named in his honour. His portrait graces the portrait-wall on the second floor of the Dana Porter Library.
In 1929 he married Dorothy C. Ramsey, daughter of Pay-Master Ramsey Rear Admiral A.R. Parker. They had two sons, Dana Jr. and Julian.
V.W. Bro. Porter passed to the Grand Lodge Above on May 13, 1967 in Toronto.
