Henry Shultz (October 10, 1776 – October 13, 1851) was a colorful entrepreneur in Northern Germany and the American South. He caused an important bridge to be built across the Savannah River at Augusta, Georgia, and founded the town of Hamburg, South Carolina.
Shultz was born Klaus Hinrich Klahn in the village of Dahme on the Baltic coast of Holstein, at the time a duchy in personal union with the kingdom of Denmark. He left Dahme for the port city of Lübeck at age 16, in time becoming a wealthy trader there and in nearby Wismar. Economic dislocation during the Napoleonic Wars pushed Klahn's business into failure. He changed his name, escaped his debtors to Altona, near Hamburg, Germany, and finally stowed away on a ship bound for America.
Shultz came to Augusta, Georgia in 1806 and took up as a laborer on the Savannah River pole boats. These carried upcountry produce such as tobacco (and later, cotton) to Savannah, Georgia, and returned with manufactured items such as metal goods, paper, and cloth. In 1809 he purchased his own boat.
In 1814 he engaged the support of a 'mechanic' named Lewis Cooper, secured financing, and drove the construction of a Savannah River bridge at Augusta. Two previous bridges had been swept away by floods, but his bridge proved remarkably durable and served the city well until 1888.
Shultz took advantage of the great success of his bridge, using it to capitalize the Bridge Company of Augusta, complete with currency known as 'Bridge Bills' that circulated widely.
All of this came to an end during the Panic of 1819. The Bridge Company failed, the Bridge Bills became worthless, and the bridge itself fell into the hands of a creditor. The enraged Shultz concluded that the citizens of Augusta conspired against him to take away his hard-earned accomplishments. Driven to desperation, Shultz attempted suicide with a pistol, but survived.