John Molson (December 28, 1763 - January 7, 1836) was an was Anglo-Quebecer who was a major brewer and entrepreneur in Canada, starting the Molson Brewing Company.

Born in England, he emigrated to Canada as a young man and in 1821 built Lower Canada's first distillery. He also established the Champlain and Saint Lawrence Railroad, the first railway into Canada, and introduced steam power into Montreal industry.

John Molson was a member of the Unitarian Church.

Among John Molson's many contributions to Montreal, in 1825 he paid for the construction of the Royal Theatre on rue Saint-Paul that provided musical and theatrical enertainment similar to the music halls of France and England.

On November 4, 1986, the government of Canada honored him with his image on a postage stamp.

Effective January 2001, the faculty of Commerce and Administration at Montreal's Concordia University was renamed to the John Molson School of Business.

John Molson is interred in the Mount Royal Cemetery in Montreal, Quebec.

External links

• Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online