THE HISTORY OF THE ECUADORIAN CORPORATION AND ITS CONTRIBUTION TO THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF ECUADOR: 1897-1986

Mientras mucho ha sido escrito sobre la construcción de la Guayaquil y Quito Railroad, poco ha sido escrito sobre la importante conexión entre las compañías subsidiarias organizadas por el ferrocarril y el desarrollo de la Ecuadorian Corporation, la primera compañía conglomerada (holding) a ser organizada en el Ecuador. El objetivo de este artículo es presentar la historia de la Ecuadorian Corporation desde sus orígenes en 1897 con la organización de la Guayaquil and Quito Railway Company y su liquidación en 1986 como resultado de una adquisición hostil por la corporación Rooney Pace. Al explorar la conexión entre la compañía del ferrocarril y la Ecuadorian Corporation, se ha puesto énfasis en los papeles de Archer Harman, el promotor de la compañía del ferrocarril y sus subsidiarias, Evermont Hope Norton, el fundador de la Ecuadorian Corporation, y Hope Norton Stevens, su nieto y sucesor. La metodología para este artículo se basó en el análisis de las fuentes primarias de la compañía del ferrocarril y sus subsidiarias y de la Ecuadorian Corporation. El presente artículo concluye con el análisis de la importante contribución de la Ecuadorian Corporation al desarrollo económico del Ecuador.While much has been written about the construction of the Guayaquil and Quito railroad, little has been written about the important connection between the subsidiary companies organized by the railroad and the development of the Ecuadorian Corporation, the first modern holding company to be organized in Ecuador. The objective of this article is to present the history of the Ecuadorian Corporation from its beginnings in 1897 with the organization of the Guayaquil and Quito Railway Company to its dissolution in 1986 as a result of a hostile take over by the Rooney Pace corporation. In exploring the connection between the railway company and the Ecuadorian Corporation, emphasis has been placed on the roles of Archer Harman, the promoter of the railway company and its subsidiaries, Evermont Hope Norton, the founder of the Ecuadorian Corporation, and Hope Norton Stevens, his grandson and successor. The methodology for this article was based on an analysis of the unpublished primary sources of the Guayaquil and Quito Railway Company and its subsidiaries and of the Ecuadorian Corporation. The article concludes with an analysis of the important contribution made by the Ecuadorian Corporation to the economic development of Ecuador.