Hazen Algar Russell
Hazen Algar Russell was born in Seal Cove, Grand Manan, New Brunswick, on March 8, 1892, the son of Peter and Alfaretta Russell.
Hazen Russell joined the Bank of Nova Scotia in 1910 working for several branches in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia until transferring to Newfoundland in 1916. While serving as manager of the bank in Catalina, Mr. Russell spent considerable time assisting Mr. William F. Coaker with the management of Coaker’s business, the Fishermen’s Union Trading Company Limited. In 1918, Hazen Russell left the bank and joined the Fishermen’s Union Trading Company Limited at Port Union. During his period of service, the company expanded to a department store with over thirty branch stores on the northeast coast of Newfoundland, artificial dryers for salt fish, a general carpenter shop, and a seal processing plant, a small freezing operation for salmon and bait and a shipyard.
In 1927, Hazen joined Job Brothers and Company Limited in St. John’s as a director and was instrumental in refitting the Blue Peter as the world’s first fish factory vessel. During this period a number of companies were formed under Hazen’s direction including Northlantic Fisheries Limited in 1945. This company purchased the controlling interest in Job Brothers and Company Limited from the Job family. In 1946, Hazen formed Blue Peter Steamships Limited. In 1953, he resigned from Job Brothers and Company Limited to devote his full energies to Bonavista Cold Storage Limited, a company he had started in 1939. This company operated a small fish processing and freezing plant at Bonavista supplied by the inshore fishermen. Hazen expanded the Bonavista plant and later added plants at Grand Bank and Fermeuse. He acquired a fleet of twelve modern stern- ramp, deep-sea trawlers to supply these plants. In 1955, he formed Russell Fisheries Inc. in the United States to market all fish sales to the U.S.
Hazen A. Russell passed away on November 14, 1983, at the age of 91.