Harry Coulby

Harry Coulby
Harry Coulby in 1917
Born	(1865-01-01)January 1, 1865 Claypole, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom
Died	January 18, 1929(1929-01-18) (aged 64) London, United Kingdom
Nationality	British American
Occupation	Businessman

Harry Coulby (January 1, 1865 – January 18, 1929) was a British American businessman known as the "Czar of the Great Lakes" for his expertise in managing the Great Lakes shipping fleet of Pickands Mather & Company. and the Pittsburgh Steamship Company. After retiring, he served as the first mayor of the newly incorporated town of Wickliffe, Ohio. His former home, Coulallenby, now serves as the city hall of Wickliffe. He chose the design for Great Lakes ore carriers in 1905 that became the standard for the next 65 years, and was elected to the National Maritime Hall of Fame in 1984.

Coulby was January 1, 1865, in Claypole, Lincolnshire, United Kingdom, to Thomas and Jane (née Bugge) Coulby. He was the fourth of seven children, and the fourth of four sons. His father was a farmer, and Coulby worked on the farm. He was educated in the local private school, and was a voracious reader. During his youth, he read about the Great Lakes and became fascinated by them. Coulby left school at the age of 11, and in the summer of 1879 at the age of 14 left home to take up residence in the town of Newark-on-Trent.

He won a position (without pay) with the London, Midland and Scottish Railway learning telegraphy. He was an expert at Morse code within three months. The company formally hired him at 12 shillings a week, and sent him to work at a telegraph station in the village of Ilkeston in Derbyshire. A year later, he was transferred to the telegraphy station at Marple, Greater Manchester, and received a raise of four shillings. In 1883, Coulby applied for and won an $800-a-year position with the British Cable Company. After a 26-day voyage about the steamship SS Leonora, Coulby arrived in Santiago de Cuba in Cuba.