Local Legends: Executive achievement

A born businessman, Donald McKillop went from being a stock clerk to a corporate executive of an international company, promoting community causes, fundraising efforts and educational opportunities for young people along the way.

McKillop was born on Dec. 18, 1921 in Detroit, Michigan, to Donald A. and Mildred (Dixon) McKillop. The family lived with his maternal grandparents, William M. and Margaret “Maggie” (Patrick) McKillop, who owned a grocery store in the northern part of the city.

By 1935, McKillop was living with his uncle, Roy Dixon, in Piqua, Ohio, and soon moved with their family to Middletown. He graduated from Middletown High School, being labeled “Fascination for blondes-optimism personified-forgetful little fellow” in the Class of 1939’s yearbook. Entering the workforce, McKillop worked as a stock clerk at the John Ross Store on Central Avenue and at American Rolling Mill Company.  

Drafted for service in World War II, McKillop was inducted into the U.S. Army on Aug. 10, 1942. He was assigned to the 338th Harbor Craft Company of the U.S. Army Transportation Corps and trained at Camp Gordon Johnston in Florida before deploying overseas to England.  

Following D-Day, McKillop’s unit was transferred to France where they operated tugboats, barges and floating cranes in off loading supplies and munitions vitally needed for the Northern France Campaign, undoubtedly teaching McKillop a lot about logistics and supply.

Following his discharge, McKillop returned to Middletown and soon after, on Aug. 31, 1946,  married Margaret “Peggy” (Miles) McKillop at the Middletown Presbyterian Church Manse.  Peggy had actually taken his job when he was drafted, and she continued to hold that job after they were married, allowing McKillop to attend Miami University on his GI Bill benefits while also working at a local haberdashery.

McKillop graduated from Miami with a bachelor’s in business administration in 1949. By that time, he and Peggy were both working at Armco, but he left in the early 1950s to become the vice president of the steel ball bearing manufacturer Coolidge Corporation, also located in Middletown. 

In 1957, McKillop made another professional transition, becoming an industrial engineer and later an accountant for the Barkelew Electric Manufacturing Company. He rose to be the plant manager within two years and served as the vice president of manufacturing from 1960-1965 before becoming the firm’s vice president of finance.

Detroit based manufacturer of electrical equipment Square D purchased Barkelew Electric in 1967, building a plant in Oxford two years later. McKillop was promoted to controller of the Oxford plant in 1970. A year later, he took over as plant manager, following the suicide of the the first Oxford plant manager, Frank J. Wartner.

By that time, McKillop had already begun making an impact in the Oxford community through his participation in local service organizations, with one of his earliest involvements being Junior Achievement of Hamilton and Vicinity. He began volunteering with the organization in 1970 and participated in a number of programs that taught business to local students.  

In one instance, he hosted and facilitated a group of students from Talawanda, organizing them into Square T, a board of directors for a simulated manufacturing company. Under McKillop’s guidance, Square T achieved a return of 58 cents on the dollar for their mock investors.

He was also a Rotarian, and in that capacity, he facilitated a student leadership program in partnership with the Talawanda High School. He also worked on committees to beautify the Oxford Municipal Pool and supported the McCullough-Hyde Memorial Hospital.

In addition to this, McKillop also chaired a drive to support children with Cystic Fibrosis, served on Miami’s Business Advisory Council, judged the Lions Club’s 1972 Halloween parade, was a member of the Oxford Citizen Advisory Committee 1973-1975 and worked on the annual United Appeals campaign, a forerunner of Butler County United Way. 

This was all done while running Oxford’s largest manufacturing operation, which had 500 hourly workers and 250 salaried workers as part of its $5.5 million – $35.6 million in 2026 – payroll.  McKillop also created a chapter of the National Management Association at Square D, and financially supported nonprofit organizations in Oxford.  

McKillop astutely handled challenges while president of Square D. Local 2287 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Square D’s employee union, went on strike over their contract from July 17 to Dec. 3, 1972. McKillop and personnel manager William D. Fightmaster negotiated with the striking workers over a long period of time, culminating in an entire day of negotiations at the Hueston Woods State Park Lodge. The agreement ultimately reached was called “the best contract of Square D history” by a union negotiator.

In the mid-1970s, McKillop also addressed local concerns about industrial pollution. Not only did he take actions to safely secure industrial waste at Square D, but he also held multiple public forums to collect input from Oxford citizens, including hosting a 1975 workshop entitled “Community Action Towards Environmental Improvement.”

Also in the mid-1970s, The McKillop Family moved to Oxford, living in a modest home at 15 Bull Run Drive, just in time for their daughter Beth (McKillop) Ginther to graduate from Talawand High School. Their oldest child, Christopher Miles McKillop, had graduated from Middletown High School a few years before and had moved to Los Angeles, where he also worked for Square D. Sadly, Christopher died there of cardiac arrest on Aug. 31, 1977.

By that time, the McKillops were living in Park Ridge, Illinois, due to McKillop having been promoted to corporate director of industrial relations in 1976. Before he left Oxford, Oxford City Manager Lee Davis and Oxford Police Chief Joseph Statum presented McKillop with a commendation for “service above and beyond the call of duty” for his community efforts.  

McKillop was promoted again in 1983, becoming head of Square D’s Utility Products Division, based in Birmingham, Alabama.

McKillop retired in 1987. He and Peggy returned to Oxford, while also living in Gulf Shores, Alabama, following which he played golf, a lifelong passion of his, and traveled extensively. In 1999, Oxford Rotary Club named him a Paul Harris Fellow, an award given for a contribution to Rotary International over a multi-year period.

Peggy died at age 92 on Jan. 1, 2018. McKillop survived her less than a year, dying on Nov. 11, 2018. They were buried together in Oxford Cemetery.

Brad Spurlock is the manager of the Smith Library of Regional History and Cummins Local History Room, Lane Libraries.  A certified archivist, Brad has over a decade of experience working with local history, maintaining archival collections and collaborating on community history projects. He also serves as a board member for Historic Hamilton Inc. and the Butler County Historical Society.