Herbert George Coales [also known as Harold George Coales; Harry G. Coales, and as H. G. Coales*] was born in Chicheley, Buckinghamshire, England on 13 December1863 and was active as a civil engineer, surveyor and architect in Market Harborough, Leicestershire, England between the 1880s and the early years of the twentieth century. In 1896 he formed a partnership with Henry Winter Johnson (1871-1918) as Coales & Johnson [also known as H. G. Coales & H. W. Johnson, and as Harold G. Coales & Henry Winter Johnson].
He was at some time in partnership with the architect Harry Reginald Coales (1879-1950) [with whom he was presumably related] in Leatherhead, Surrey.
Photographs of the exterior and steps from the lounge hall and staircase of a house at Northwood designed by Coales & Johnson are illustrated in 'The Studio Yearbook of Decorative Art' 1909 (pp.27, 28), and photographs of the exterior and the entrance hall of 'The Hill', Market Harborough, designed by Coales & Johnson are illustrated in 'The Studio Yearbook of Decorative Art' 1911 (pp.18-19). Coales died in Leicester, Leicestershire on 19 December 1945
* Coales's first name is invariably given as Harold or Harry, however, Herbert is the first name given on all the England Census returns from 1871 to 1911.