Edgar Prince

Career and company

Edgar D. Prince was a Michigan industrialist who established the automotive supplier Prince Corporation in Holland in 1965. The company produced automotive interior systems and components; after his death in 1995, its holding-company business was acquired by Johnson Controls effective October 1996 for about $1.3 billion. ^{[princeFounder][princeSec]}

Family

Prince married Elsa Zwiep. Their children included Betsy Prince DeVos and Erik Prince. Betsy became an education-policy advocate and federal education secretary; Erik founded Blackwater. Their later organizations remained separate from Prince Corporation. ^{[family][erikBio]}

Documented connections

• Prince Corporation — founder in 1965.
• Betsy DeVos — daughter; Erik Prince — son; Elsa Prince — spouse.
• Johnson Controls — acquired the Prince Holding Corporation business after his death in 1996.

Sources

1. Warren Johnson Society, historical account of Edgar Prince founding business in 1965
2. Johnson Controls, 1999 SEC annual report recording acquisition of Prince Holding Corporation
3. PBS NewsHour/AP, Prince and DeVos family background
4. TIME, Erik Prince biographical and family profile (2009)