Erik Grant Lea

Erik Lawrence Grant Lea (October 15, 1892 – April 28, 1979) was a Norwegian ship-owner, banker, insurer and mill owner. He became one of the most mythical tycoons of the boom years of World War I in Norway.

Those that grew up in Bergen after World War II could hardly avoid hearing the fairy tale about Lea, a fellow citizen, who became the richest ship owner in the world, married an Indian princess, and then lost everything and settled with his princess in some distant corner of SSognefjord.

Behind this myth there was a turbulent life. In his days of wealth and power he owned 10 shipping companies, a bank and three insurance companies. His ships crossed oceans all over the world. He had 500 agents on three continents. In 1917 his agents signed 60,000 fire policies, insured the whole fishing fleet of Ålesund and little by little most of the Norwegian fleet. His spouse Hilda was no princess, but the daughter of a major and an Indian woman from a wealthy business family from Bangalore. In 1922 Lea lost everything and settled in Gjølanger in Fjaler in Sunnfjord, Sogn og Fjordane and had to start from scratch earning a living for himself and his family.

He was born in Bergen, Norway, the son of Lars Lea and Anna Bertine Magnussen, and married to Hilda Constance, née Connor, born 1889 in Bangalore, India, died 1960 in Fjaler, later remarried to Hildur Augusta Sørensdatter Tyssedal, born 1916 in Fjaler. He was the fifth of eight brothers and sisters, raised in a large apartment in Håkonsgate in Bergen. He attended the Hambro primary school up to age 14, when his father took him out of school and began to personally impart him a business education.

At sixteen he started working as a clerk, later employed by Kjær og Isdahl (Kjær and Isdahl), a substantial shipping business, where he was quickly promoted office manager. In 1914 he bought his first steam ship and in 1915 he started his own shipping company. In 1915–16 he bought and sold ships for 30 million NKr (approximately 4.6 million USD). In 1917 he sold six of his companies to Bjørnstad og Brækhus, then founded Leas Assuranseseslskab A/S (Lea's Insurance Company Inc.). Shortly after he added the insurance companies Jupiter and National. He then founded Leas Aktie- og Bankierforretning A/S (Lea's Stock and Bankers Enterprise Inc.).

...
Wikipedia