Roy Stone (general)

Roy Stone
Roy Stone
	Roy Stone in the Civil War
Division of Public Roads
	In office; October 3, 1893 – October 13, 1899
Preceded by	Position Established
Succeeded by	Martin Dodge
Personal details
Born	October 16, 1836; Plattsburgh, New York,US
Died	August 5, 1905(aged 68); Mendham, New Jersey,US
Military service
Allegiance	United States of America; Union
Branch/service	United States Army; Union Army
Years of service	1861–1865, 1898
Rank	Brigadier General
Commands	149th Pennsylvania Infantry
Battles/wars	American Civil War; Spanish–American War Puerto Rican Campaign;

Roy Stone(October 16, 1836 – August 5, 1905) was an American soldier, civil engineer, and inventor. He served in theAmerican Civil War,distinguishing himself during theBattle of Gettysburg,and took part in theSpanish–American War.He pursued a civil engineering career in a peacetime and became in 1893 the first head of the Office of Road Inquiry, which was theFederal Highway Administration's predecessor.^[1]

Early life and family

Stone was born inPlattsburgh, New York,to Ithiel V. and Sarah Stone. His family had been among the early settlers of the region, and his father owned a large estate. As a young man, he was an engineer and lumberman before the Civil War. Stone married Mary Elizabeth Marker at theFirst Presbyterian ChurchinPittsburghon August 14, 1862. They had two children, a son, Richmond and a daughter, Romaine (Mrs. L. Turnure Jr. and later LadyMonson).^[2]^[3]

Civil War

Stone served as aUnion Armyofficer during the Civil War and became noted for his stubborn defense of the McPherson Farm during theBattle of Gettysburg.

He first served asmajorof the 13thPennsylvania Reserves,a regiment that saw action at several early war battles, includingAntietam.Stone returned to Pennsylvania to help recruit new regiments; he was commissioned ascolonelof the newly raised149th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantryin 1863. He commanded abrigadein the third division ofI Corpsof theArmy of the Potomacin theBattle of Chancellorsvillebut did not see serious combat. During theGettysburg Campaign,Stone retained command of his three Pennsylvania regiments.

On July 1, 1863, on the first day of theBattle of Gettysburg,his brigade, largely composed of green troops, was posted onMcPherson's Ridgesouth of the Chambersburg Pike. Although the brigade had not seen previous combat, it was instrumental in holding back several assaults by theConfederates.Stone moved his regiments to block attacks by ColonelJohn BrockenboroughandBrigadier General Junius Daniel.His troops held until theIron Brigadeand other Federal units fell back.^[4]Stone's men were among last to withdraw from their sector. Stone was severely wounded in the hip and arm in the fighting, and he returned home to recuperate.^[5]

After his return to active duty, Stone served briefly as a brigade commander inJames Wadsworth's 4th Division,V CorpsduringLt. Gen.Ulysses S. Grant's 1864Overland Campaign.He was removed from command during theBattle of the Wilderness.Stone's horse fell on him on May 5, but many presumed he had been drunk on the battlefield.^[6]

Stone commandedCamp Curtin,Pennsylvania, September 7, 1864–December 15, 1864, and theAlton Military PrisoninAlton, Illinois,December 15, 1864–January 27, 1865.^[5]He resigned from the volunteers on January 27, 1865.^[5]

On December 12, 1864,President Abraham Lincolnnominated Stone for appointment asbrevet brigadier general,U.S. Volunteers, to rank from September 7, 1864, for "gallant services during the war, and especially at Gettysburg" and theUnited States Senateconfirmed the appointment on February 20, 1865.^[7]

Postbellum

Stone became a leading advocate of theGood Roads Movementwhich is now known. His contributions led to major changes and improvements in highway construction and design. He served as one of the early heads of theDivision of Public Roadsfrom October 3, 1883 - October 13, 1899.^[1]

Among his inventions was asteam-driven monorailat theCentennial International Exhibitionof 1876 in Philadelphia.^[8]^[9]A larger version was built in 1878 asBradford and Foster Brook Railway,Pennsylvania.^[10]^[11]

Stone briefly returned to active military duty with the rank of Brigadier General in 1898, serving in thePuerto Rican Campaignof theSpanish–American War.

Death

Roy Stone died August 5, 1905, atMendham, New Jersey.^[12]^[5]He is buried atArlington National Cemetery.^[5]^[13]

Honors

Stone Avenue in theGettysburg National Military Parkis named in his honor and memory. ThepalmgenusRoystoneais named in memory of the work he did in road building in Puerto Rico during the capture of the island.^[14]

References

^^a ^bRichard F. Weingroff.The Federal Highway Administration at 100,Public Roads,No. 2, Vol. 57, Autumn 1993
^MacColl, Gail; Wallace, Carol McD. (2012).To Marry an English Lord: Tales of Wealth and Marriage, Sex and Snobbery in the Gilded Age (An Inspiration for Downton Abbey).Workman Publishing. p. 352.ISBN 9780761171980.Retrieved1 August2021.
^General Roy Stone and The New York Times, by The Rambler.
^Pfanz, Harry W.Gettysburg—The First Day.Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2001.^{: 196–199}
^^a ^b ^c ^d ^eEicher, John H., andDavid J. Eicher.Civil War High Commands.Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001, p. 514.ISBN 978-0-8047-3641-1
^Rhea, Gordon C. The Battle of the Wilderness May 5–6, 1864. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2004.^{: 237–238}
^Eicher, John H., andDavid J. Eicher,Civil War High Commands.Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001.ISBN 978-0-8047-3641-1.p. 758.
^General Roy Stone and The New York Times
^General Roy Stone's Centennial Monorail
^Monorail History
^Mark Reinsberg. General Stone's Elevated Railroad: Portrait of an Inventor,The Western Pennsylvania Historical Magazine,1966, Vol. 49, No. 3.
^PORTRAIT OF A GENERAL: GENERAL ROY STONE, by Richard F. Weingroff.
^Burial detail: Stone, Roy.ANC Explorer.
^Cook, O.F.(1901)."A Synopsis of the Palms of Puerto Rico".Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club.28(10). Torrey Botanical Society: 525–69.doi:10.2307/2478709.JSTOR 2478709.no

External links

General Roy Stone Photo Gallery,Federal Highway Administration
Inventor Roy Stone,Google Patents
General Roy Stone's Centennial Monorail

[Federal_Highway_Administration_at_100-1] Richard F. Weingroff.The Federal Highway Administration at 100,Public Roads,No. 2, Vol. 57, Autumn 1993

[2] MacColl, Gail; Wallace, Carol McD. (2012).To Marry an English Lord: Tales of Wealth and Marriage, Sex and Snobbery in the Gilded Age (An Inspiration for Downton Abbey).Workman Publishing. p. 352.ISBN 9780761171980.Retrieved1 August2021.

[3] General Roy Stone and The New York Times, by The Rambler.

[4] Pfanz, Harry W.Gettysburg—The First Day.Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2001.^{: 196–199}

[Eicher514-5] Eicher, John H., andDavid J. Eicher.Civil War High Commands.Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001, p. 514.ISBN 978-0-8047-3641-1

[6] Rhea, Gordon C. The Battle of the Wilderness May 5–6, 1864. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2004.^{: 237–238}

[7] Eicher, John H., andDavid J. Eicher,Civil War High Commands.Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001.ISBN 978-0-8047-3641-1.p. 758.

[8] General Roy Stone and The New York Times

[9] General Roy Stone's Centennial Monorail

[10] Monorail History

[11] Mark Reinsberg. General Stone's Elevated Railroad: Portrait of an Inventor,The Western Pennsylvania Historical Magazine,1966, Vol. 49, No. 3.

[12] PORTRAIT OF A GENERAL: GENERAL ROY STONE, by Richard F. Weingroff.

[13] Burial detail: Stone, Roy.ANC Explorer.

[14] Cook, O.F.(1901)."A Synopsis of the Palms of Puerto Rico".Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club.28(10). Torrey Botanical Society: 525–69.doi:10.2307/2478709.JSTOR 2478709.no

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v t e Gettysburg figures
Confederateleaders	Lee Alexander R. Anderson G. Anderson Archer Armistead Barksdale Benning Brockenbrough Chambliss Daniel Davis Doles Early Ewell Garnett Gordon Hampton Hays Heth Hill Hood Humphreys Imboden Iverson Jenkins Johnson J. Jones W. Jones Kemper Kershaw Lane Law F. Lee W. Lee Longstreet Mahone Marshall McLaws O'Neal Oates Pender Pettigrew Perrin Pickett Posey Ramseur Robertson Rodes Scales Semmes Smith G. Steuart J. E. B. Stuart Thomas Trimble J. Walker R. Walker Wilcox Wofford Wright
Unionleaders	Meade Ames Ayres Barlow Barnes Baxter Biddle Birney Buford Caldwell Candy Carpenter Carr J. Chamberlain Claflin Cross Curtin Cushing Custer Cutler Crawford Doubleday Farnsworth Geary Gibbon Gilsa Graham Greene Gregg Hancock Harrow Hays Hooker Howard Humphreys Hunt Kilpatrick Krzyżanowski Lincoln Meredith Merritt Newton Nolan Paul Pleasonton Reynolds Rice Robinson Rowley Ruger Schimmelfennig Schurz Sedgwick Sickles Slocum Stannard Starr Steinwehr Sykes Tilton Tyler Vincent Wadsworth Ward Warren Weed Webb Willard Williams Zook
Other notable military personnel	Alger Avery Baker Belo Berdan Biddle Brooke Brown Bryan Burgwyn Burling Carroll Carter T. Chamberlain Colvill Corby Coster Dearing Devin Ellis Enderlin Lyon Fremantle Fry Gamble Garrard Godwin Goree Gregg Grimes Gwyn Hall Harrison Haskell Hazlett Howell Humiston Jeffords Jones Kelly Keogh Lang Latimer Lewis McCandless McDougall McFarland McIntosh Mayo Melcher Morrill Muhlenberg O'Rorke Pardee Pegram Perrin Poague Salomon Smith Sorrel Spear Stone Taylor Trobriand Wainwright Ward
Local civilians	Broadhead Bryan Burns McClean McConaughy McPherson Wade Wills