Born in
Toronto, he was a son of George Gooderham Sr. (1830–1905), an eminent businessman, and his wife Harriet Dean. His grandfather was
William Gooderham, a founder of the
Gooderham and Worts distillery. Gooderham became a managing director at Gooderham and Worts in 1905, and vice-president in 1912. In 1929, Gooderham survived the
stock market crash with his fortune largely intact. During the financial crisis that followed, he kept the
Toronto Symphony Orchestra from bankruptcy. Gooderham was made a Knight Commander of the
Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG) in the
1935 New Year Honours list. He died later that year on April 25, 1935. ==References==