LeRoy Pennysaver & News

LE ROY PENNYSAVER & NEWS - MARCH 10, 2019 by Lynne Belluscio Recently this display be- came available on Ebay. It is a reprint of an advertisement for the lead shot that was man- ufactured in New York City by Thomas LeRoy. He was the eldest son of Jacob and Char- lotte LeRoy and he was born in LeRoy House on July 9, 1823, soon after his parents moved to town. He was named for his mother’s father, Thomas Otis. Not much is known about Thomas, or his education, but the family moved back to New York City when he was a teen- ager. In 1844, when he was 21, he established the T.O. LeRoy Company which manufactured lead pipe and lead shot. He had a factory at the foot of 54th and 53rd Streets at the East River. In 1847, he relocated to Water Street listed on this advertise- ment, where he built a new shot tower and in 1848, registered a patent for a new process of mak- ing lead shot which had been developed by David Smith. The new process allowed cold air into the tower, which cooled the hot lead faster, and made it possible to have a much short- er shot tower. (Details of the factory and the cold air process were published in the Historical Society newsletter in 2009.The historical society has in its col- lection several lead shot bags as well as a small lead bar stamped with “T.O. LeRoy” as well as a piece of letterhead. ) This display includes actu- al lead balls as described in the poster. (Of course, it cannot be proven whether these lead balls were manufactured by T.O. Le- Roy, but they are listed on the poster.) Top to bottom: .69 Calibre Mini Musket conical ball which was picked up at Shiloh, Tennessee; .58 Calibre U.S. Minie Rifle which was found in Tennessee; .44 Cal- ibre Colt’s Army Rifle found in Murfreesboro, Tennessee; .36 Calibre Colt’s Navy Pistol, from Murfreesboro, Tennessee; .69 Calibre U.S. Musket ball collected at Murfreesboro, Ten- nessee; .44 Calibre Colt’s Army Rifle lead ball, collected at Shi- loh, Tennessee, and buck shot collected at Shiloh. Several years ago, a sales- man’s display of lead shot was offered on Ebay. Two dozen little glass bottles were arranged in a case for “Eagle Brand Shot.” The bidding was fast and furious and I had to drop out, but maybe someday I’ll find another. Thomas LeRoy and his brother, Edward continued in business. Thomas died in 1877, but Edward maintained the company under his brother’s name until he retired. In 1890, sixteen shot manufacturers, in- cluding LeRoy Shot Company created a combined trust under the name of the American Shot Tower Association. Today, the building that housed the T.O. LeRoy Com- pany still stands in lower Man- hattan, two blocks from South Seaport. The building is now the home of the Mark Joseph Steak House, one the best steak houses in New York City. A few years ago, on one of our bus trips, a group of us from LeRoy had dinner there, and I don’t think anyone will forget it. T.O. LEROY & CO. - Water Street, New York