Frances Ellen Watkins Harper Collaborative Club

Support a Worthy Cause!
Join the Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (F.E.W.) Collaborative Club, Inc. of NACWC in making a difference! We’re collecting non-perishable food items to support the Bethany Baptist Church Food Pantry in Newark, NJ, and we need your help.

Your donation can help fight food insecurity and bring relief to families in need.

🛒 How to Donate:
Simply scan the QR code or copy and paste the URL into your web browser to contribute. #

Elijah McCoy: Pioneering Engineer and Inventor
Elijah McCoy, renowned for his 1872 patent "Improvement in Lubricators for Steam-Engines," overcame significant racial barriers to become one of America's most prolific inventors.
Biography
Born May 2, 1844, in Colchester, Ontario, Canada to formerly enslaved parents who had escaped to freedom, McCoy showed mechanical aptitude from an early age. His parents supported his education, sending him to Scotland's University of Edinburgh where he studied mechanical engineering.
Upon returning to the United States, McCoy settled in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Despite his qualifications, racial discrimination prevented him from securing engineering work matching his skills. Instead, he took a position as a fireman and oilman with Michigan Central Railroad.
Innovations
While working on the railroad, McCoy identified inefficiencies in locomotive lubrication systems. His solution—an automatic lubricator that distributed oil evenly over moving parts while the train operated—revolutionized the industry. By 1900, his device was standard equipment on North American railroads.
Throughout his career, McCoy obtained over 57 patents, including designs for:

Automatic lubricators for industrial machinery
A graphite lubricator for superheated equipment (1916)
Practical household inventions like the movable ironing board and lawn sprinkler

In 1920, he established the Elijah McCoy Manufacturing Company.
Legacy
The phrase "the Real McCoy," widely used to signify authenticity and quality, originated from railroad engineers specifically requesting McCoy's genuine lubricators rather than inferior imitations.
McCoy died on October 10, 1929, in Detroit, Michigan following complications from a serious automobile accident in 1922 that had also claimed his wife Mary's life. He is buried at Detroit Memorial Park East in Warren, Michigan.
His remarkable achievements despite systemic racism established him as a significant figure in American engineering history.
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Frederick Douglass was an extraordinary figure in American history who escaped from enslavement in 1838. Following his marriage to Anna Murray that same year, they settled in Massachusetts, where Douglass became active in the abolitionist movement. He expanded his advocacy to include women's rights as well.

One of his most powerful speeches posed the question, "What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July?" This rhetorical question powerfully highlighted the stark contradiction between American ideals of freedom and the reality of slavery.

While Douglass and President Abraham Lincoln initially disagreed on aspects of the Emancipation Proclamation, particularly regarding voting rights for formerly enslaved people, they eventually found common ground. After Lincoln's assassination in 1865, Douglass played a crucial role in securing the passage of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. These amendments abolished slavery, guaranteed citizenship rights, and protected voting rights, respectively. His tireless work for civil rights helped shape the foundations of equality in America.

(Note: Frederick Douglass's actual birthdate was uncertain, as birth records were not typically kept for enslaved people. He chose to celebrate it on February 14.). Douglass !