John Henry Devereux

John Henry Devereux (5 April 1832 - 17 March 1886), was an American civil engineer and leading midwest railroad executive. He was the president of the "Big Four" Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, and Indianapolis Railway (CCC&), an office he held until his death in 1886.

John Henry Devereux was born on April 5, 1832, in Boston, Massachusetts, to John and Matilda (Burton) Devereux. 

He attended Portsmouth Academy in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. 

In 1848, at the age of 16, Devereux relocated to Cleveland to work as a construction engineer on first the Cleveland, Columbus & Cincinnati Railroad, then the Cleveland, Painesville & Ashtabula Railroad. 

From 1852-61, he worked in Tennessee, joining the Union Army when the Civil War began. 

In 1862, as a colonel, he was in charge of all Union rail lines in Virginia, in disarray because of damage inflicted by Confederates and conflicts between various Army and government departments using the lines. Devereux improved efficiency, organized inspection, and repair units, obtained equipment, enforced use rules, and smoothed differences between departments. Under his supervision, the trains moved large amounts of troops, artillery, and the sick. Devereux resigned as a general in the spring of 1864.

After the war, Devereux returned to Cleveland as a general superintendent. He later became the vice-president of the Cleveland & Pittsburgh Railroad. 

In 1868, he became a vice-president of the Lake Shore Railroad, eventually becoming its president. He also served as a general manager when Lake Shore Railroad consolidated into the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railway in 1869.

On April 6, 1869, Lake Shore and the Michigan Southern and Northern Indiana Railroad merged to form the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway, which absorbed the Buffalo and Erie Railroad on June 22, giving one company the whole route from Buffalo to Chicago. The main route passed through Dunkirk, New York, Erie, Pennsylvania, Ashtabula, Ohio, Cleveland, Ohio, Toledo, Ohio, Waterloo, Indiana, and South Bend, Indiana.

In 1873 Devereux became president of the Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati & Indianapolis Railroad and the Atlantic & Great Western Railroad Co. and several smaller companies. 

Devereux entered politics and was twice defeated for Congress. 

Devereux married Antoinette Cecilia Kelsey in 1851. They had 4 children: Mary, John, Antoinette, and Henry K. Devereux. 

Devereux died on 17 March 1886 in Cuyahoga, Cleveland, Ohio. He is buried at Lake View Cemetery, Cleveland.

• The Devereux Station, at 7145 Main Street Clifton, Virginia, is named after Devereux. The station was located on a wartime siding of the Orange & Alexandria Railroad that supplied wood to fuel trains running on the important line.
• In November 2013, Devereux was the subject of a play titled "Railroads: Rough and Regal Times- Meet Mrs. John Henry Devereux" in Clifton, Virginia. Local artist Lynn Garvey-Hodge portrayed Devereux's wife Antoinette, telling the story of her husband, John Devereux. The performance included talk about life in the 19th century, with many references to the civil war, the gilded age, and celebrated people such as Mark Twain and John D. Rockefeller.
• The Devereux residence, built in 1873, was part of "Millionaires' Row" on 3226 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland.