James E. Royal

Engineering executive James E. Royal, Jr. was born on April 2, 1937 in the Bronx, New York to James Royal, Sr. and Eunice McKissack Royal. Royal graduated from John Bartram High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1955 and attended Fisk University in 1956 in Nashville, Tennessee where he studied mathematics for two years before receiving his B.S. degree in mechanical engineering from Drexel University in Philadelphia in 1959. In 1972, Royal also earned a certification from the Institute of Technology at the International Business Machines Corporation.

Royal began his career in 1958 as a lathe operator in an apprenticeship program at Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company. The following year, he was drafted into the U.S. Army until 1963 when he was hired as a mathematician for interspace vehicle programs, an early iteration of the NASA Space Program, at the General Electric Company in New York City, New York. Then, in 1967, Royal joined IBM where he held several leadership positions in East Fishkill, Poughkeepsie, and Armonk including manager of information systems, quality assurance manager, assistant engineer, senior engineer, and program manager during a twenty-five-year tenure with IBM, before his retirement in 1992.

Also, Royal was active in the Hudson Democratic Party including his service as deputy mayor in the mayor’s office of Newburgh, New York from 1983 to 1985. He also served in leadership roles with the NAACP, including as New York State Manager and as president of the Hudson Valley NAACP chapter. In 1970, Royal joined the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., and was appointed its founding alumni president until 1982.

Royal resides in Berwyn, Pennsylvania with his wife, Judith Logan Royal. He has three children: Stephanie Royal, Lisa Nelson, and Peter Royal.

James E. Royal Jr. was interviewed by The HistoryMakers on July 19, 2023.