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Thomas Roy - Geologist and Engineer (d.1842)
Up one levelThomas Roy may well have been North America’s first engineering geologist
(Legget, 1973). Little is known of his early life. A letter from James
Kerby, Fort Erie Mills, to Lt. Col. William Rowan, Secretary to
Lieutenant Governor Sir John Colborne, 15 July 1834, introduces "Mr. Roy from Scotland, who has come to Canada with a view to settling and to make himself as useful as he can as an engineer." (National Archives of Canada [hereafter NAC], U.C. Sundries, RG 5, A-1, pp.78074-75). (Roy's family background may have been in Scotland, as here, or in New Brunswick - see accompanying files.) He lived in Toronto, Ontario from 1834 until his death in 1842 and worked on many projects associated with roads, canals and railways. His obituary showed that he “not only planned and carried into execution the various public improvements which have raised this city (Toronto) to its present state of prosperity, but he has for years employed himself in examining into the geological features of this Province...”. To honour the memory of Thomas Roy, the Society’s Engineering Geology Division established in 1982 an award carrying his name.
- R.F. Legget: Thomas Roy and his "Remarks on road making" (1841) by Jim Graham — last modified 2010-03-16 14:46
- In l841, Thomas Roy wrote and published a remarkable little book on road making, in some ways far ahead of its time. This paper by R.F. Legget (Can.Geotech.J., 25, (1-12), 1988) presents biographical information about Roy and significant extracts from the book. The paper has been made available through permission from NRC Research Press.
- Thomas Roy - comments and correspondence by Jim Graham — last modified 2010-03-29 12:33
- The file examines the family background of Thomas Roy, in particular, whether he came from a Scottish family settled in New Brunswick or directly from Scotland.
- Thomas Roy - archival records by Jim Graham — last modified 2010-03-29 12:28
- Sources of available archival records in Canada prepared by Stephen A. Otto (independent historian)
