Elijah mccoy for kids biography
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Elijah McCoy
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Who Was Elijah McCoy?
Elijah McCoy was born in Canada, to parents who had fled slavery. McCoy trained as an engineer in Scotland as a teenager. Unable to find an engineering position in the United States, he took a job working for a railroad and subsequently invented a lubrication device to make railroad operations more efficient.
Early Life
McCoy was born on May 2, , in Colchester, Ontario, Canada, to George and Mildred Goins McCoy. The McCoys were fugitive slaves who had escaped from Kentucky to Canada via the Underground Railroad. In , the large family returned to the United States, settling in Ypsilanti, Michigan.
Engineer and Inventor
Beginning at a young age, McCoy showed a strong interest in mechanics. His parents arranged for him to travel to Scotland at the age of 15 for an apprenticeship in mechanical engineering. He returned home to Michigan after becoming certified as a mechanical engineer.
Despite his qualifications, McCoy was unable to find work as an engineer in the United States due to racial barriers; skilled professional positions were not available for African Americans at the time, regardless of their training or background. McCoy accepted a position as a fireman and oiler for the Michigan Central Railroad. It was in this line of
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Biography of Elijah McCoy, American Inventor
Elijah McCoy (May 2, –October 10, ) was a Black American inventor who received more than 50 patents for his inventions during his lifetime. His most famous invention was a cup that feeds lubricating oil to machine bearings through a small tube. Machinists and engineers who wanted genuine McCoy lubricators might have used the expression "the real McCoy"—a term meaning "the real deal" or "the genuine article."
Fast Facts: Elijah McCoy
- Known For: McCoy was a Black inventor who improved steam engine technology by designing an automatic lubricator.
- Born: May 2, , in Colchester, Ontario, Canada
- Parents: George and Mildred McCoy
- Died: October 10, , in Detroit, Michigan
- Awards and Honors: National Inventors Hall of Fame
- Spouse(s): Ann Elizabeth Stewart (m. ), Mary Eleanor Delaney (m)
Early Life
Elijah McCoy was born on May 2, , in Colchester, Ontario, Canada. His parents—George and Mildred McCoy—had been enslaved from birth and became freedom seekers leaving Kentucky for Canada on the Underground Railroad. George McCoy enlisted in the British forces, and in return, he was awarded acres of land for his service. When Elijah was 3, his family moved back to the U.S. and settled in Detroit
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When people expect of engineers overcoming barriers, they usually think position mechanical challenges. Elijah McCoy, a Canadian-American mechanical originator of Human descent, overcame a divergent challenge: racism.
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