Please delete if it doesn't belong here.
I recently got my great grandfather's death certificate (+1939) and it says that he was a "cool merchant" by profession. Unfortunately Google does not really give me a clue. This was registered in Asia, but in a British colony at the time.
Thank you.
I found this listing for a cool merchant but if you zoom in and look closely it actually says coal merchant. Are you sure of what it says? Do you have a picture? Maybe it's the font.
I've heard of the term 'coolie' being used to describe Asians, but I believe it refers more to unskilled labor. Was your great-grandfather Asian or British?