C. D. Howe - Later Life, Death, and Legacy

Later Life, Death, and Legacy

Howe returned to Ottawa after his defeat, cleared his office, and soon sold his house there, moving to Montreal. He said of the new Diefenbaker government, "I don't trust this new bunch very much." Howe determined to leave politics entirely, but St. Laurent asked for his continued help, and Howe replied that he would help the party any way he could. After St. Laurent announced his retirement in September, Howe wrote to the former Prime Minister, "The young men of the party must take on the job of reorganising and rebuilding, and perhaps the sooner they get at it the better." While publicly taking no position, Howe privately supported former External Affairs Minister Pearson in the Liberal leadership race—Pearson won the contest in January 1958. Howe advised Pearson not to take any action that might provoke an election. Pearson did not heed Howe, and challenged Diefenbaker as soon as Parliament met. The election on 31 March returned the Progressive Conservatives in a record landslide which left the Liberals with 48 seats. Howe, who took no part in the campaign, had already left for Europe with his wife Alice on an extended holiday. On his return, he did what he could to help rebuild the Liberal Party after the disaster, assisting with fundraising and seeking to unite factions within the party.

After some hesitancy, likely caused by fears the newly empowered Tories would resent any approach to their longtime enemy, major corporations began to approach Howe and ask that he serve on their boards of directors. Although outspoken against the Tory Government, Howe refused to join the criticism when Diefenbaker's Cabinet cancelled the Avro Arrow in February 1959. In 1958, Howe was made chancellor of Dalhousie University. On investigating the university's finances, he found that a professor's salary in 1958 had less buying power than when he had worked there. Howe urged increased salaries and building improvements which would attract first-rate scholars to the university. He also accepted a number of honorary degrees from other universities. Howe had a longtime heart condition, and friends urged him to give up all boards which did not meet in Montreal. Before he could act on this suggestion, Howe suffered a heart attack and died at his home on 31 December 1960.

Prime Minister Diefenbaker said of Howe upon his death, "We often had strong differences but our personal relations remained most friendly at all times... He gave his great ability, indomitable courage and energy to his country in a manner that has earned for him and will assure him of a large place in the history of Canada's war effort." Opposition Leader Pearson stated, "He was a man who shirked no duty, faltered in no task, was daunted by no obstacle. He got things done, and they were good things for the country he served so well and so long."

At his memorial service, enemies and friend alike gathered. Among the eulogies delivered by friends and colleagues at Christ Church Cathedral in Montreal, it was remarked that Howe often stated proudly that he was "an American by birth but Canadian by choice".

After Howe's death, the C. D. Howe Memorial Foundation was created in his memory; the C. D. Howe Institute, a Canadian economic policy think tank was at one time associated with the Memorial Foundation. The Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute (CASI) introduced the C. D. Howe Award for achievements in the fields of planning and policy making, and overall leadership in the field. In 1976, Howe was inducted into Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame, in honour of his contribution to creating a national airline and efforts to create and sustain a viable aviation industry. The C. D. Howe Building, located at Bank and Sparks Street in Ottawa, is the home of Industry Canada and is named for the former minister.