Edgar Prince

Background

Edgar Dale Prince was born on May 3, 1931 in Holland, Michigan. His father was a local businessman who died of a stroke when Edgar was only 11.

Education

He graduated from the University of Michigan, where he received a bachelor of science degree in engineering.

Career

Prince started his career at a company manufacturing die cast machines in Holland, Michigan. He quit in order to start his own manufacturing business with the help of two co-workers. The venture proved very successful and was a leading manufacturer of die cast machines in Michigan by the 1970s.

The Prince Corporation also operated a successful diversification into auto parts by developing sun visors and other interior systems for car manufacturers.

After a long period of sustained growth, it employed thousands in the early 1990s at its many plants. Ownership in the business made Editor Prince one of the wealthiest men in Michigan.

He supported financially many institutions, as well as civic projects such as the renovation and development of downtown Holland, where a monument was dedicated to him. He collapsed in an elevator and died in 1995.

Throughout his career he"d battled congenital heart disease.

His company was sold the following year for $1.35 billion and is now a unit of Johnson Controls. He died on March 2, 1995 in Holland, Michigan.

Achievements

• He was the founder of the Prince Corporation.