Have you ever heard anybody asking for the ‘real McCoy?’ It means that they don’t want any inferior imitations, only the ‘real thing’ will do. You might too complain from time to time that you want the best… Well, the next time you’re complaining about baked beans or tomato sauce then spare a thought for the African-American inventor, Elijah McCoy, which it's thought may be where the phrase comes from, due to his quality inventions. Elijah’s parents, George and Emilla, were slaves in Kentucky, America, but they bravely escaped slavery, going to Canada using the system of routes, safehouses and helpers nicknamed the 'underground railroad'. Learn more about this at: http://afgen.com/underground_railroad.html. Elijah was born in Colchester, Ontario, Canada on 2nd May, 1844. Several years later, his family returned to America and moved to Ypsilanti, Michigan where his father worked in the logging industry. It was pretty obvious early on that Elijah was going to be dab hand at anything that involved machinery. He was fascinated with his father’s machines and tools. In fact, Elijah had a habit of taking things apart and putting them back together again. I expect his parents were so proud! Fortunately for Elijah, his parents weren’t angry with him, instead they could see their son had a very special talent and decided to save up so that Elijah could go on to further education. Elijah attended grammar school until he was 15, and with the money his parents had been saving he then moved to Scotland, where he studied mechanical engineering. After finishing his studies, Elijah returned to the United States as a fully-fledged engineer and mechanic, but he couldn't find any work. Again, as in the other profiles on this Website, it was nothing to do with Elijah’s abilities but the colour of his skin. At that time, professional jobs were usually not available to African-Americans so Elijah settled for a job as a fireman for the Michigan Central Railroad. Elijah’s job as a fireman involved shovelling coal onto fires which would help to produce steam that powered the locomotive. Elijah lived during a time when steam power was rapidly becoming a prime power source. It was the era of the machine age and many inventions of this time involved moving parts which needed lubricating with oil to continue working. This was all very well, but no one had yet solved the problem of getting oil to the moving parts without first having to shut the machinery down. So from time to time, the train Elijah was working on had to be stopped and Elijah would oil its moving parts. Someone as intelligent and skilled as Elijah must have found this job pretty boring, but you wouldn’t hear Elijah grumbling about the work. Instead he set about trying to work out how he could do his job more efficiently. And of course, any of you who have part time jobs must realise how important efficiency is: INCREASED EFFICIENCY = LONGER COFFEE BREAKS! Elijah quickly realised that stopping the train could be very dangerous. In those days, steam trains had no way to communicate with each other and moving trains would often crash into trains that had stopped for oiling. It was also a time consuming and expensive process, which made Elijah determined to come up with something to solve the problem. Elijah set about developing a lubricating cup that would automatically drip oil onto the moving parts of the train, without having to stop the train. In 1872, he received his first patent for his ‘oil cup’. I don’t know where he got the inspiration from… In the beginning, his device was belittled because a black man had created it… Luckily, this attitude didn’t last long and Elijah’s oil cup was soon used on engines, train locomotives, steamships, ocean liners and factory machinery. No longer did steam trains have to stop frequently and factory machines could continue running. There were many imitations of Elijah’s oil cup on the market, but because his oil cup was extremely reliable, buyers would always ask for the ‘real McCoy.’ An inferior make of oil cup just would not do. Elijah was married twice. His first marriage to Ann Elizabeth Stewart ended in tragedy when she died just four years later. In 1873, Elijah married Mary Eleanor Delaney and the couple lived in Detroit, Michigan for the next 50 years. Over the years, Elijah made many improvements to his lubricator. Among them were solutions to the problem of lost oil and lubricators that worked with graphite. In 1920, Elijah established the ‘Elijah McCoy Manufacturing Company.’ With his new company, he improved and sold his graphite lubricator as well as other inventions, like… Yes, he patented the portable ironing board after his wife wanted an easier way of ironing clothes. Here’s how Elijah would spent his Saturday afternoons… That was until he invented the lawn sprinkler! Elijah never stopped inventing and was granted fifty–two patents in his lifetime. His inventions were known all over the world. Sadly, in 1922, Elijah and Mary were involved in a traffic accident and both suffered severe injuries. Mary died from the injuries and Elijah's health suffered for several years until he died in 1929. His friends recall Elijah as being a kind man who would urge his neighbourhood children to go to school and get an education. He would show them his inventions and he hired young African-–Americans to work in his factory. You should remember his hard work every time you want the best and you ask for the "real McCoy." To enter into history as an inventor is remarkable – but to enter into the English language is better still! Click here to read Dr Dwain Neil's comments... Go back