Harold B Smith

Harold B. Smith is a retired officer of ITW and is a director of W.W. Grainger Inc., Northern Trust Corporation and its subsidiary, The Northern Trust Company. Mr. Smith has served as a director of ITW since 1968. Harold was born in Chicago, the eldest son of Harold Byron Smith and Pauline Belle Hart. He grew up in Barrington, Illinois and attended The Choate School in Wallingford, Connecticut. He graduated from Princeton University in 1955 and went on to earn an MBA from Northwestern University in 1957. Over a span of nearly 70 years, he held operational, managerial and executive roles with Illinois Took Works (ITW), including becoming President, Chief Operating Officer and Vice Chairman. As a long-time Board Member, his stewardship saw ITW grow from a family-run business to a Fortune 500 company. Harold was also a Director of The Northern Trust Company for 36 years, another company founded by Byron L. Smith. In addition, he served for many years as a Board Member of W.W. Grainger, Inc. and Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company. For over 50 years, he served on the Board of Rush University Medical Center where he was instrumental in directing their growth and mission. He also served on the Boards of The Newberry Library, Northwestern University, Adler Planetarium and Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Harold was active in politics. He was a member of the Republican National Committee for two decades and served as the Chairman of the Illinois Republican Committee. He was a six-time Delegate to the Republican National Convention. Harold will be missed by his daughters, Stephanie (Peter) Choo, Carrie (Laurence) Grant, Polly (Bruce) Douglass and Emily (Bill) Reedy; grandchildren, Phillip (Chloe) Grant, Anne Grant, Christopher (Kayla Tsongas) Douglass, Kendall (Chris) Fuller, Carrie Douglass, Will Reedy, Caroline (Nick) Gertonson, Brian Reedy, Julia Reedy and Stephanie Reedy; great-grandchild, George Grant; brothers, David (Vicky) Smith, Stephen (Mary) Smith, Christopher (Jeannie) Smith and numerous extended family members. He was preceded in death by his late wife, Denise Grace Smith, and the mother of his daughters, Frederica Smith Pederson.