Dufferin Construction

When 15-year-old James Franceschini stepped off the boat from Pescara, Italy, in 1906, he arrived in Canada with no money and barely a word of English.But what he lacked in wealth, he made up for with determination. Before long, James had launched his own small contracting business. He carefully saved every dollar, invested in equipment, […]

On my walk last month in Mt. Pleasant Cemetery, I found the grave of James Franceschini. A true rags to riches story.

James arrived in Canada from Central Italy (Abruzzi region) in 1906 at the age of 15. This young man who arrived with no money, could not speak English and had no place to stay would go on to  built one of Ontario’s largest construction companies, Dufferin Construction.