Sudbury entrepreneur, William Day, dead at 84.

• Position: Obituary

William Day, founder of the William Day Construction and Day Group of Companies, died in Sudbury on Aug. 25 at the age of 84.

Born in Escuminac, Que. on the Gaspe peninsula, Day spent his early years in the bush working alongside his father, Oben, before moving to Sudbury in the early 1950s.

"He had a half-ton, small single-axle, and plenty of drive to get him started," reads Day's biography on the company's website. "In those days, the Sudbury region was just starting to come into its own."

Day got his first contract with the former community of Dowling, doing hauling work and snow plowing.

"Father and son teamed up and were soon contracted by both Falconbridge and the M.J.-Poupore Lumber Company to do construction work and hauling," the biography says.

In 1955, the Day Group was born. Today, the company has grown and diversified to include Day Construction, Day...