Elroy McKendree Avery,

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

LL.D. Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the early ...

Ohio History - The Scholarly Journal of the Ohio Historical Society
Volume 4, page 453 (Sketches of Life Members), 1895 (July 14, 1844 – December 1, 1935) was school principal, politician, author, and historian. Avery was an Ohio State Senator in the 1890s before becoming an early resident of west

Pasco County, Florida Pasco County is located on the west central coast of the U.S. state of Florida. According to the 2020 census, the population was 561,691. Its county seat is Dade City, and its largest city is Zephyrhills. The county is named after Samuel Pasco ...

and was the first mayor of

New Port Richey, Florida New Port Richey is a city in Pasco County, Florida, United States. It is a suburban city included in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was counted at 16,728 in the 2020 census. History By ...

. As an author, Avery wrote school textbooks about

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

and

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

as well as books about the history of the United States,

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

, and New Port Richey. Avery was born in Erie, Michigan as the elder son of Caspar Hugh and Dorothy (Putnam) Avery. He fought in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

achieving the rank of

Sergeant-Major Sergeant major is a senior non-commissioned rank or appointment in many militaries around the world. History In 16th century Spain, the ("sergeant major") was a general officer. He commanded an army's infantry, and ranked about third in the ...

while with the 11th Michigan Cavalry. Also in the 1860s, he worked as a writer for the ''

Detroit Tribune The ''Detroit Tribune'' a newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, United States, was started as the ''Daily Tribune'' in 1849 and used the name until 1862. In 1862 the ''Tribune'' joined with the (Detroit) ''Daily Advertiser'' which then absorbed other ...

''. In

Battle Creek, Michigan Battle Creek is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan, in northwest Calhoun County, Michigan, Calhoun County, at the confluence of the Kalamazoo River, Kalamazoo and Battle Creek River, Battle Creek rivers. It is the principal city of the Battle C ...

, he was a high school principal in 1869 and married Catherine Hitchcock Tilden on July 2, 1870.Mrs. Elroy M. Avery (Catharine Hitchcock Tilden), December, 1844-December, 1911: A Memorial
from the Family History Archives at the

Harold B. Lee Library The Harold B. Lee Library (HBLL) is the main academic library of Brigham Young University (BYU) located in Provo, Utah. The library started as a small collection of books in the president's office in 1876 before moving in 1891. The Heber J. Gran ...

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

In 1871, Avery graduated from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

and relocated to Cleveland where he continued as a school principal from 1871 to 1879. In 1891 and 1892, Avery was on the

Cleveland City Council Cleveland City Council is the legislative branch of government for the City of Cleveland, Ohio. Its chambers are located at Cleveland City Hall at 601 Lakeside Avenue, across the street from Public Auditorium in Downtown Cleveland. Cleveland Ci ...

before being elected to the state senate and serving from 1893 to 1897.History of Pasco County - Early Residents of Pasco County
by Jeff Miller (with sources given including 1950 ''

Funk & Wagnalls Funk & Wagnalls was an American publisher known for its reference works, including ''A Standard Dictionary of the English Language'' (1st ed. 1893–5), and the ''Funk & Wagnalls Standard Encyclopedia'' (25 volumes, 1st ed. 1912).Funk & Wagnalls N ...

Encyclopedia''). On December 22, 1911, Mrs. Avery died. Elroy Avery worked as a publisher in Cleveland until he retired and moved to New Port Richey, Florida in June 1919.The Great Floridians 2000 Program
from the Florida Department of State. He brought a personal collection of over 1,000 books which he used to help establish the Avery Library and Historical Society on December 22, 1919 and opened the doors on April 10, 1920 (currently the New Port Richey Public Library and West Pasco Historical Society Museum and Library).History of Pasco County - The Timeline
by Jeff Miller (with sources given) He was also the chairman and director of the First State Bank of New Port Richey which was founded on October 25, 1921. On October 27, 1924, New Port Richey was incorporated and Avery was named its first mayor at age 80, serving until 1925. He died there on December 1, 1935.

Partial list of publications

*''Elements Of Chemistry, 1881, ASIN B00M69I1FY *''The Complete Chemistry: A text book for high schools and academies'', 1883, ASIN B0008735MU *''Elements of Natural Philosophy : a text book for high schools and academies'', Sheldon and Company, 1885, ASIN B000JG6HCA *''The Averys of Groton'', 1888, ASIN B000894JK0 *''Elementary Physics'', Sheldon and Company, 1897, ASIN B00069Y8IA *''The Evolution of a Colonial System'', 1900, ASIN B0008C7BWK *''A History of the United States and Its People from Their Earliest Records to the Present Time'', 16 volumes, the first was originally from 1904 (reprinted in 2001, ). *''John Humfrey, Massachusetts magistrate: Did he marry the daughter of the third Earl of Lincoln!'', 1912, ASIN B0006AGIUA * ASIN B000GPVFBC *''The Genesis of New Port Richey'', 1924, ASIN B00085U8WW

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Avery, Elroy M. 1844 births 1935 deaths People from Monroe County, Michigan University of Michigan alumni Ohio state senators Cleveland City Council members Mayors of places in Florida People of Michigan in the American Civil War Writers from Michigan