William Ellis Corey

William Ellis Corey (May 4, 1866 – May 11, 1934) was president of the Carnegie Steel Company from 1901 to 1903, and was president of the U.S. Steel from 1903 to 1911.^[1]

William Ellis Corey
President of the U.S. Steel
In office 1903–1911
President of the Carnegie Steel Company
In office 1901–1903
Personal details
Born	(1866-05-04)May 4, 1866 Braddock, Pennsylvania
Died	May 11, 1934(1934-05-11) (aged 68) Manhattan, New York City
Spouse(s)	Laura Cook ​ (m. 1883⁠–⁠1906)​ Mabelle Gilman ​ (m. 1907⁠–⁠1923)​
Signature

Biography

He was born in Braddock, Pennsylvania in 1866.^[2] In 1883, he married Laura Cook, whom he met when she worked for his family,^[3] and they had one son, Allan Corey. In 1906, Laura filed for divorce in Reno, Nevada, charging that William had deserted her in May 1905.^[4] Laura was awarded custody of Allan^[5] and a settlement of $3,000,000 (approximately $104,989,000 today).^[6] After the divorce, William married an actress, Mabelle Gilman^[7] on May 14, 1907,^[8] and in 1914 Laura married Lenn A. Duckworth.^[9] In 1911, Corey resigned his position as president of U.S. Steel.^[2] In 1923, Mabelle and William were divorced.^[10]

He died in Manhattan, New York City on May 11, 1934.^[1][11]

City of Corey, Alabama

The city of Fairfield, Alabama, was originally named for Corey in 1910 by the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad Company (TCI), which built the city as a model city for workers at the company's nearby Fairfield Works. The negative publicity from Corey's divorce prompted U.S. Steel, which had taken over TCI, to rename the city for the company president's hometown in Connecticut.^[12]