Adam E. Cornelius was one of the co-founders of the American Steamship Company

American Steamship Company

The American Steamship Company is an American transportation company that operates a fleet of in the Great Lakes. The company is owned by the General American Transportation Corporation .-History:...

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Biography

At age 20, Cornelius went to work for a small shipbroking

Shipbroking

Shipbroking is a financial service, which forms part of the global shipping industry. Shipbrokers are specialist intermediaries/negotiators between shipowners and charterers who use ships to transport cargo, or between buyers and sellers of ships.Some brokerage firms have developed into large...

 and shipping chartering

Chartering (shipping)

Chartering is an activity within the shipping industry. In some cases a charterer may own cargo and employ a shipbroker to find a ship to deliver the cargo for a certain price, called freight rate. Freight rates may be on a per-ton basis over a certain route or alternatively may be expressed in...

 business owned by John J. Boland

John J. Boland

-Biography:John J. Boland was the son of a Great Lakes schooner captain. At age 20, Boland formed a small shipbroking and shipping chartering business. In 1902, he hired Adam E. Cornelius to do clerical work. In 1904, Boland invited Cornelius to enter into a partnership with his firm. In 1907,...

 in Buffalo, New York

Buffalo, New York

Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...

. Initially, Cornelius did clerical work and earned six dollars a week. In 1904, Boland invited Cornelius to enter into a partnership with his firm. In 1907, Boland and Cornelius launched a company which they named the American Steamship Company

American Steamship Company

The American Steamship Company is an American transportation company that operates a fleet of in the Great Lakes. The company is owned by the General American Transportation Corporation .-History:...

. Their first vessel, the SS Yale

SS Yale

SS Yale, a 3,731 gross ton coastal passenger steamship, was built by the Delaware River Iron Shipbuilding and Engine Works in 1906. In March 1918 the U.S. Navy acquired her from the Pacific Steamship Company of Seattle, Washington, placing her in commission later in that month as USS Yale...

 was the first steel vessel owned by a Buffalo firm and earned large profits for the partners. Boland and Cornelius ran the American Steamship Company successfully until the Great Depression

Great Depression in the United States

The Great Depression began with the Wall Street Crash of October, 1929 and rapidly spread worldwide. The market crash marked the beginning of a decade of high unemployment, poverty, low profits, deflation, plunging farm incomes, and lost opportunities for economic growth and personal advancement...

, at which point Cornelius came up with the idea of converting the company's fleet to self-unloaders. This strategy paid off. Cornelius' son, Adam E. Cornelius, Jr. was involved with the American Steamship Company, and took over as chairman after Cornelius Sr. died in 1953.

A number of vessels owned by the American Steamship Company have been named the Adam E. Cornelius in his honor.