George Stephen, 1st Baron Mount Stephen
George Stephen, 1st Baron Mount Stephen, Bt, GCVO , known as Sir George Stephen, Bt, between 1886 and 1891, was a prominent Canadian businessman. Originally from Scotland, he made his fame in Montreal and was the first Canadian to be elevated to the Peerage of the United Kingdom. He was the financial genius behind the creation of the Canadian Pacific Railway.
In 1829, Stephen was born at Dufftown, Banffshire, in a cottage built by his grandfather. He was the son of William Stephen , a carpenter, and Elspet, daughter of John Smith, a crofter at Knockando, Moray. His mother was a first cousin of the philanthropic Grant brothers of Manchester, immortalised as the Cheeryble Brothers in Charles Dickens book, Nicholas Nickleby.
Source: Wikipedia