Henry D. Coffinberry
| Henry D. Coffinberry | |
|---|---|
| Born |
October 12, 1841 Maumee, Ohio |
| Died | January 17, 1912 (aged 70) Cleveland, Ohio |
| Resting place | Lakeview Cemetery, Cleveland |
| Residence | 257 Franklin Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio |
| Education | Graduate of West High School of Cleveland, Ohio. |
| Occupation | Industrialist, ship building |
| Known for | One of the founders of the Globe Iron Works/Globe Shipbuilding Company, the Cleveland Shipbuilding Company and the Ship Owner's Dry Dock Co. all of which eventually came to be known as the American Ship Building Company |
| Spouse(s) | Harriet Duane Morgan Coffinberry, daughter of General George W. Morgan |
| Children | Nadine Morgan Coffinberry Morley (1876–1964) Maria Duane Coffinberry (1879–1952) |
| Parent(s) |
James McClure Coffinberry (1818–1891) |
| Relatives | Mary Elizabeth Coffinberry Brooks (1853–1938)(sister) |
James McClure Coffinberry (1818–1891)
Anna Maria Coffinberry
Henry Darling Coffinberry (October 12, 1841 – January 17, 1912) was a prominent American industrialist from Cleveland, Ohio. Along with his partner, Robert Wallace, H. D. Coffinberry is considered one of the founding fathers of modern Great Lakes shipping. Following a memorable Civil War career on the ironclad gunboat Louisville, Coffinberry returned to civilian life in Cleveland, Ohio. There he met Robert Wallace and together they built the first iron and steel hulled freighters to be used on the Great Lakes.
Coffinberry and Wallace were partners in both a foundry (Globe Iron Works) and a wooden shipbuilding firm, (Cleveland Dry Dock Company). Coffinberry became president of the Globe Ship Building Company in the early 1880s, which launched the first iron-hulled (Onoko, 1882) and steel-hulled (Spokene, 1886) Great Lakes freighters. After selling their share to M. A. Hanna, Coffinberry and several partners left Globe in 1886 to create the Cleveland Shipbuilding Company, followed by the Ship Owners Dry Dock Company. Coffinberry served as president of the firms until retiring in 1893. He was also an investor in the Elwell Parker Electric Motor Company of America, formed in 1893 to produce electric motors for bulk cargo handling. By 1899 the firm produced motors for battery-driven automobiles, but the company earned its reputation after 1906 as a manufacturer of electric industrial trucks to more efficiently move baggage and cargo at train terminals and shipping ports.
Coffinberry died January 17, 1912.
Henry D. Coffinberry was born in Maumee, Ohio, October 12, 1841 (some records list his birth as October 14, 1841). He was the son of Judge James M. Coffinberry, of Cleveland, and Anna M. Coffinberry, who was a direct descendant of Thomas Fitch, colonial governor of Rhode Island, and related to John Fitch, the inventor who was the first to apply steam to navigation. Other members of the family were ship owners and masters of vessels. Mr. Coffinberry's father, the Judge, was a descendant of Andrew Coffinberry, a lawyer and geologist of some fame and a patriot of distinction, having served in the Federal navy under Bainbridge and Hull in the War of 1812.
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