Henry B. Joy Historical Research (Organization)

The Henry B. Joy Historical Research was an organization of professional researchers established by Henry B. Joy to gather material, to do historical research, and to produce biographical studies first of James F. Joy, Detroit attorney and railroad entrepreneur, and second, of Abraham Lincoln.

The Henry B. Joy Historical Research (HBJHR) was an office established and funded by Detroit businessman Henry B. Joy in 1928 to do original research into the life and career of James F. Joy, Henry's father, who was a lawyer and railroad entrepreneur. The first director of the office was Stephen I. Gilchrist; M.C. McConkey was assistant director. Soon after beginning his study of James F. Joy, Gilchrist convinced Henry B. Joy to broaden the scope of HBJHR to include the life of Abraham Lincoln. While a Springfield attorney, Lincoln was employed by Joy on litigation arising out of the extension of the Michigan Central line into Chicago and the subsequent use needed of tracks belonging to the Illinois Central Railroad. Henry B. Joy was fascinated by Lincoln and wanted to produce a reliable life of the Civil War president.

Working out of a Detroit office building, Gilchrist and McConkey diligently sought out materials on Joy and Lincoln. Although they fully intended to publish the results of their research, they never did. Gilchrist produced a draft history of the Chicago Burlington and Quincy Railroad and a life of Abraham Lincoln, while McConkey authored a biography of Joy. All of these works remain unpublished. A few months after the death of Henry B. Joy in 1936, the office closed and the materials were given over to Mrs. Henry B. Joy.