User:Virginia Hillbilly/Andrew Roy (mining inspector)

= Andrew Roy (mining inspector) =

Andrew Roy (mining inspector) (July 19, 1834 -- October 19, 1914), was a Union Civil War soldier and POW, geologist, mining inspector, and author from Ohio.

Early life
ANDREW ROY

Andrew Roy, son of David and Mary Roy, was born in Lanarkshire, Scotland, July 19, 1834. His father came to America in 1849, and in 1850 Andrew followed him and landed in Maryland, where he remained till 1859

Andrew Roy was born in Lanarkshire Scotland. He attended school until he was eight years of age and then went to work in the coal mines. When he was sixteen his father and family moved to America and settled in the coal regions of Maryland. Young Roy remained with his parents a few years and then went West, working in the mines of a number of Western States. In 1860 together with a friend, he was digging coal in Arkansas. The booming of the rebel cannon before Fort Sumter shook the woods of that half-savage State. Roy saw the gathering clouds of civil war and did not hesitate a moment.

1885 Book with Biography Sectioni   Smeared pages and some sections not legible.

1885 Book The Practical Miners Companion with clear pages

1907 Book with Biography Section   Good quality scan.

The Coal Mines

Civil War
Andrew Roy joined the Pennsylvania Reserves which was assigned to fight under General George B. McClellan during his Penninsula Campaign. Roy was assigned to Company F of the 10th Pennsylvania Reserve Regiment. He was shot through the body on his left side just above the groin at Gaines' Mill on June 27, 1862 during the Seven Days Battle outside of Richmond, Virginia. He was left behind at the field hospital, too wounded and suffering to make the trip, as the Federals hastily retreated to Savage's Station from the advancing Confederates. The two sergeants who were tending to him retreating only minutes before the rebel soldiers arrived. A Confederate surgeon examined him the day after he was shot and told him he would not live even three days. As he lay on the ground outside of the plantation house used as a hospital. flies swarmed around his wound. After three days and finding himself still alive, he wrote a letter to his mother and placed it in his blouse so that if he died, the soldiers who buried him would find it and forward it to his mother. He didn't know that two of his fellow soldiers had written to her and informed her that he was mortally wounded and captured by the enemy. After later gaining strength and just before being transferred to Richmond, he tore the letter up. Coincidentally, his company captain, Milo R. Adams, was shot through his body three days after Roy at Charles City Crossroads and also taken prisoner. He was also housed at Libby Prison, exchanged on August 27, 1862, and lived through his ordeal also. Apparently, Roy and Adams never met while at Libby.

sent him back to Libby Prison. In a few months he was paroled, returned home, had a surgical operation performed on his wound and recovered.

Maggots help healing. Maggots have antimicrobial properties.

Mining Career
He married Janet Watson in 1864, and a few years later moved to Ohio. After the dreadful Avondale disaster Mr. Roy was sent by the miners to Columbus to urge upon the legislature the necessity of mining laws for Ohio. Governor Hayes appointed him to serve with two others on a commission to investigate the condition of the mines and report the same to the legislature. The result of the report was the passage of mining laws. Governor Allen appointed Roy mine inspector for four years, and Governor Foster did the same. In 1884 Mr. Roy retired from the office, enjoying the respect of the miners of the State. During the time he held the inspector's office he gained a considerable reputation as a geologist. His efforts on behalf of the miners were unceasing, and he has been called the father of mining laws in Ohio.



One of the most intelligent and successful miners Scotland has sent to this country, Andrew Roy, a native of Lanarkshire, was the first State Inspector of Mines in Ohio, and the first in the United States outside of the anthracite district of Pennsylvania. He has been identified with mining in the State of Ohio for thirty years and has had practical experience in other parts of the country. it was through his exertions that the Mining School was established in connection with the Ohio State University.

, when he went to Arkansas. In 1861 he enlisted in the Tenth Pennsylvania Reserve Infantry, being engaged in many of the battles of the war. He was wounded at the battle of Gaines Hill, from which he has never fully re-covered, and was left for dead on the battle field. He was then kept in Libby Prison some time when he was exchanged and discharged in the fall of 1863. July 21, 1864, he was married to Janet Watson. Seven children have been born to them—Maggie, D. Y., Flora, William, Dock, Charles and James. In 1874 he was appointed State Mine Inspector by Governor Allen, which position he still holds. In 1878 he was nominated on the Greenback ticket for Secretary of State, but was not elected, although he came out ahead of his ticket. He owns 125 acres of land where he resides, and in May, 1883, laid out on his farm the town of Glen Roy, consisting of 200 lots. Mr. Roy is a member of Colonel Dove Post, G. A. R., at Coalton, Ohio.

ANDREW ROY was born in Lanarkshire, Scotland, in 1834. He attended school until he was eight years of age and then went to work in the coal mines. When he was sixteen his father and family moved to America and settled in the coal regions of Maryland. Young remained with his parents a few years and then went west, working in the mines of a num­ber of Western States. In 1860, together with a friend, he was digging coal in Arkansas. The booming of the rebel cannon before Fort Sumter shook the woods of that half-savage State. Roy saw the gathering clouds of civil war and did not hesitate a moment. He threw down his tools, hastened east and joined a Pennsylvania company of volunteers. He under McClellan in the bloody battles before Richmond, was shot through the body at Gaines' Hill and was left as dead by the retreat­ing Federals. The rebels, however, found him yet alive and sent him back to Libby Prison. In a few months he was paroled, returned home, had a surgical operation performed on his wound and recovered. He married Janet Watson in 1864, and a few years later moved to Ohio. After the dreadful Avondale disaster ­Mr. Roy was sent by the miners to Columbus to urge upon the legislature the necessity of mining laws for Ohio. Governor Hayes ap­pointed him to serve with two others on a com­mission to investigate the condition of' the ANDREW ROY, mines and report the same to the legislature. The result of the report was the passage of mining laws. Governor Allen appointed Roy mine inspecting for four years, and Governor Foster did the same. In 1884 Mr. Roy retired from the office, enjoying the respect of the miners of the State. During the time he held the inspector's office he gained a considerable reputation as a geologist. His efforts on behalf of the miners were unceasing, and he has been called the father of mining laws in Ohio. He is the author of several books on coal-mining and frequently contributes articles to the noted mining journals of the country. At present (1888) he resides at Glen Roy, a mining village in Jackson county, Ohio.

Andrew Roy, an Ohio miner of British origin and the first inspector of mines in Ohio, became widely known as an authority on mining and an advocate of legislation for safety in mines. In addition to his History of the Coal Miners of the United States, he is the author of The Coal Mines, a book on technical phases of the coal-mining industry, published in 1876. His History of the Coal Miners, pub¬ lished about 1903, devoted only a few pages to an account of the American Miners’ Association.

Andrew Roy founded the village of Glen Roy Ohio The Glen Roy post office was established on January 2, 1883. The name was changed to Glenroy on July 12, 1893, and the post office ultimately closed on July 30, 1921.

Author
He is the author of several books on coal-mining and frequently contributes articles to the noted mining journals of the country. At present (1888) he resides at Glen Roy, a mining village in Jackson county, Ohio.

Books:

A history of the coal miners of the United States, from the development of the mines to the close of the anthracite strike of 1902, including a brief sketch of early British miners  First Edition 1903  Second Edition 1906 Third Edition 1907

The Coal Mines: Containing a Description of the Various Systems of Working and Ventilating Mines, Together with a Sketch of the Principal Coal Regions of the Globe, Including Statistics of the Coal Production  1876

The practical miner's companion: or, Papers on geology and mining in the Ohio coal field  1885

Recollections of A Prisoner of War  1905  Second Edition 1909

Family
Wife: Jeanette Watson Roy 1846-1928   married 1864 Children: Margaret Roy Longbon, 1865-1945

David Tod Roy, 1868-1904

Mary Florence Roy McKinniss, 1871-1919

William Allen Roy, 1875-1945

Robert Daugherty Roy, 1877-1955

Charles Foster Roy, 1879-1947

James Watson Roy, 1882-1957 David T. Roy followed his father into the mining business.