John Roach (shipbuilder)

Article summary

John Roach (December 25, 1815 – January 10, 1887) was an American industrialist who found the largest shipbuilding empire in the United States during and after the Reconstruction Era, John Roach & Sons. Roach emigrated to the United States at the age of sixteen in 1832, eventually finding employment at the Howell Works of James P. Allaire in New Jersey, where he learned the ironmolder's trade. Following an abortive attempt at farming in Illinois in 1839, Roach returned to Allaire's employment at the Allaire Iron Works in New York City, where he learned how to build marine steam engines. In 1852, after 20 years in the employment of Allaire, Roach and three partners purchased a small New York ironworks which had fallen into receivership, the Etna Iron Works. Roach soon became sole proprietor, and during the American Civil War transformed the Etna Works into a major manufacturer of marine engines. He continued to prosper after the war, diversifying into the manufacture of machine tools and buying out his main engine-building competitors in the postwar slump. In 1867 he purchased the Morgan Iron Works on New York's East River, and relocated his business there.…

Key claims

1. date of birth: 1815-12-25 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
2. date of death: 1887-01-10 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
3. date of death: 1831 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
4. date of death: 1887-01-10 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
5. date of establishment: 1876 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
6. date of establishment: 1871 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
2. The record states that the date of birth is "1815-12-25". What evidence would count against this claim?
3. The record states that the date of death is "1887-01-10". What evidence would count against this claim?
4. The record states that the date of death is "1831". What evidence would count against this claim?
5. The record states that the date of death is "1887-01-10". What evidence would count against this claim?
6. The record states that the date of establishment is "1876". What evidence would count against this claim?
7. The record states that the date of establishment is "1871". What evidence would count against this claim?
8. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
9. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1361558260