On May 2, 1844, 180 years ago today, Elijah McCoy was born in Colchester, Ontario to George and Mildred Goins McCoy—fugitive slaves who had escaped from Kentucky and traveled north to Ontario via the Underground Railroad.  Elijah was educated in the segregated black schools of Ontario, and then went to Scotland to study at the University of Edinburgh where he became certified as a mechanical engineer. 

But when he later returned to Michigan, where his family had since moved, he could only find work as a fireman and oiler—basically a general maintenance job for trains—at the Michigan Central Railroad, despite his education and engineering certification.  So, he put his engineering mind to work in his home-based machine shop and eventually invented an automatic lubricator for the steam engine.  His invention—which he constantly refined and improved while accumulating more patents than any other black inventor up to that time—allowed trains to travel faster and farther without having to stop to cool their engines.

McCoy continued to develop useful inventions throughout his life, but he was mostly known for the automatic lubricator, which was so superior to imitation versions that railroad engineers reportedly only wanted locomotives for their trains that were fitted with “the real McCoy” – a phrase still used today when someone wants to describe something as the authentic original.

Elijah’s story made me wonder: What if he just took the job he was offered and never did anything with his engineering genius?  And, if others don’t immediately give you opportunities befitting your talents and skills, how will you find a way to share them with the world anyway?

Have a wonderful day.