A. L. Beattie
Encyclopedia
Alfred Luther Beattie typically referred to as A. L. Beattie, was a pioneering locomotive engineer. Born in Yorkshire
, England
, he gained fame as the Chief Mechanical Engineer of the New Zealand Railways Department
(NZR) between 1900 and 1913. During this time, Beattie designed the Q class
, the first 4-6-2
steam locomotive
class in the world, and he was also one of the earliest people to utilise other wheel arrangement
s.
at Port Chalmers
in 1876, when he joined NZR. In February 1897, Beattie was given the position of Locomotive Engineer at Addington Workshops
in Christchurch
. Unlike in some countries, where "locomotive engineer" is the title of regular train drivers
, the title in New Zealand then referred to a specific position that oversaw the design and construction of new steam locomotive
s and the maintenance and enhancement of existing locomotives.
and was succeeded by Beattie. When Beattie was appointed to the position, the title was "Locomotive Superintendent", but it was restyled as Chief Mechanical Engineer early in his term, between July 1901 and April 1902. During his time in the role, Beattie designed a number of innovative and original locomotives. He retired after holding the position for 13 years and was succeeded by Henry Hughlings Jackson on 13 October 1913.
coal
from Canterbury
and Otago
. Baldwin Locomotive Works
recommended a camelback
design to solve the problem, but Beattie conceived the idea of an enhanced 4-6-0
UB class locomotive with a two-wheel trailing truck
to support a wide Wootten firebox
. This created a 4-6-2 wheel arrangement
under Whyte notation
, and an order was placed with Baldwin for thirteen locomotives to Beattie's specifications in 1901. These locomotives became the Q class, and the first entered service on 24 December 1901 after being shipped across the Pacific Ocean
. This voyage led to the 4-6-2 arrangement being nicknamed the Pacific type, and it became a popular arrangement worldwide.
was designed in 1905 for service on the Main South Line
and the nearly-complete North Island Main Trunk Railway. It was a further development of the Q class and earlier 4-6-0
designs such as the U class, seeking to rectify faults with those designs and improve efficiency and hauling power. Beattie created the initial design before passing it on to Chief Draughtsman G. A. Pearson to complete, and when the first members of the A class entered service in 1906, they were considered to be the country's most handsome locomotives.
Mountain type. The A class locomotives were not sufficiently powerful to tackle the steep grades on the North Island Main Trunk, and Beattie's solution was the 4-8-2 X class
. Designed in 1908 for the opening of the Trunk, the first of eighteen Xs entered service on 9 January 1909, and they were some of the largest and most powerful locomotives in New Zealand.
s such as 1903's WF class
, 1910's WG class, and 1913's WW class. Beattie was also one of, if not the, first to employ the 4-6-4
T arrangement - the 1902 conversions of three B class
locomotives into the WE class and the WG and WW are some of the earliest examples in the world of the 4-6-4T arrangement.
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, he gained fame as the Chief Mechanical Engineer of the New Zealand Railways Department
New Zealand Railways Department
The New Zealand Railways Department, NZR or NZGR and often known as the "Railways", was a government department charged with owning and maintaining New Zealand's railway infrastructure and operating the railway system. The Department was created in 1880 and was reformed in 1981 into the New...
(NZR) between 1900 and 1913. During this time, Beattie designed the Q class
NZR Q class (1901)
The NZR Q class was an important steam locomotive not only in the history of New Zealand's railway network but also in worldwide railways in general. Designed by New Zealand Government Railways' Chief Mechanical Engineer A. L. Beattie and ordered from the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1901, they...
, the first 4-6-2
4-6-2
4-6-2, in the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and two trailing wheels on one axle .These locomotives are also known as Pacifics...
steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
class in the world, and he was also one of the earliest people to utilise other wheel arrangement
Wheel arrangement
In rail transport, a wheel arrangement is a system of classifying the way in which wheels are distributed beneath a locomotive.. Several notations exist to describe the wheel assemblies of a locomotive by type, position, and connections, with the adopted notations varying by country...
s.
Early life
Born in 1852, his birth was registered in Hunslet as Alfred Luther Betty. He arrived in New ZealandNew Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
at Port Chalmers
Port Chalmers
Port Chalmers is a suburb and the main port of the city of Dunedin, New Zealand, with a population of 3,000. Port Chalmers lies ten kilometres inside Otago Harbour, some 15 kilometres northeast from Dunedin's city centre....
in 1876, when he joined NZR. In February 1897, Beattie was given the position of Locomotive Engineer at Addington Workshops
Addington Workshops
The Addington Railway Workshops was a major railway facility established in the Christchurch suburb of Addington in May 1880 by the New Zealand Railways Department. The workshops were previously in Carlyle Street and closed in 1990.-Description:...
in Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
. Unlike in some countries, where "locomotive engineer" is the title of regular train drivers
Railroad engineer
A railroad engineer, locomotive engineer, train operator, train driver or engine driver is a person who drives a train on a railroad...
, the title in New Zealand then referred to a specific position that oversaw the design and construction of new steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s and the maintenance and enhancement of existing locomotives.
Career as Chief Mechanical Engineer
In April 1900, the Chief Mechanical Engineer, Thomas Forth Rotheram, left NZR to work for the Western Australian Government RailwaysWestern Australian Government Railways
Western Australian Government Railways was most common name of the Western Australian government rail transport authority from 1890 to 1976. It is, in its current form, known as the Public Transport Authority of Western Australia....
and was succeeded by Beattie. When Beattie was appointed to the position, the title was "Locomotive Superintendent", but it was restyled as Chief Mechanical Engineer early in his term, between July 1901 and April 1902. During his time in the role, Beattie designed a number of innovative and original locomotives. He retired after holding the position for 13 years and was succeeded by Henry Hughlings Jackson on 13 October 1913.
The Q class
Beattie was almost instantly faced with a problem upon appointment as Chief Mechanical Engineer: New Zealand's railway network was expanding, traffic volumes were growing, faster speeds were required, and accordingly, a more powerful type of locomotive was required. Furthermore, although this new class was to haul the heaviest and fastest expresses, it was to burn low grade ligniteLignite
Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, or Rosebud coal by Northern Pacific Railroad,is a soft brown fuel with characteristics that put it somewhere between coal and peat...
coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
from Canterbury
Canterbury, New Zealand
The New Zealand region of Canterbury is mainly composed of the Canterbury Plains and the surrounding mountains. Its main city, Christchurch, hosts the main office of the Christchurch City Council, the Canterbury Regional Council - called Environment Canterbury - and the University of Canterbury.-...
and Otago
Otago
Otago is a region of New Zealand in the south of the South Island. The region covers an area of approximately making it the country's second largest region. The population of Otago is...
. Baldwin Locomotive Works
Baldwin Locomotive Works
The Baldwin Locomotive Works was an American builder of railroad locomotives. It was located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, originally, and later in nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania. Although the company was very successful as a producer of steam locomotives, its transition to the production of...
recommended a camelback
Camelback locomotive
A camelback locomotive is a type of steam locomotive with the driving cab placed in the middle, astride the boiler...
design to solve the problem, but Beattie conceived the idea of an enhanced 4-6-0
4-6-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-6-0 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles in a leading truck, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and no trailing wheels. This wheel arrangement became the second-most popular...
UB class locomotive with a two-wheel trailing truck
Bogie
A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...
to support a wide Wootten firebox
Wootten firebox
The Wootten firebox is a type of firebox used on steam locomotives. The firebox was very wide to allow combustion of anthracite coal waste, known as Culm. Its size necessitated unusual placement of the crew, examples being camelback locomotives...
. This created a 4-6-2 wheel arrangement
Wheel arrangement
In rail transport, a wheel arrangement is a system of classifying the way in which wheels are distributed beneath a locomotive.. Several notations exist to describe the wheel assemblies of a locomotive by type, position, and connections, with the adopted notations varying by country...
under Whyte notation
Whyte notation
The Whyte notation for classifying steam locomotives by wheel arrangement was devised by Frederick Methvan Whyte and came into use in the early twentieth century encouraged by an editorial in American Engineer and Railroad Journal...
, and an order was placed with Baldwin for thirteen locomotives to Beattie's specifications in 1901. These locomotives became the Q class, and the first entered service on 24 December 1901 after being shipped across the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
. This voyage led to the 4-6-2 arrangement being nicknamed the Pacific type, and it became a popular arrangement worldwide.
The A class
Described as the "triumph of Beattie's term in office", the A classNZR A class (1906)
The A class were steam locomotives built in 1906 with a 4-6-2 wheel arrangement for New Zealand's national railway network, and described by some as the most handsome engines to run on New Zealand rails. The class should not be confused with the older and more obscure A class of 1873. They were...
was designed in 1905 for service on the Main South Line
Main South Line
The Main South Line, sometimes referred to as part of the South Island Main Trunk Railway, is a railroad line that runs north and south from Lyttelton in New Zealand through Christchurch and along the east coast of the South Island to Invercargill via Dunedin...
and the nearly-complete North Island Main Trunk Railway. It was a further development of the Q class and earlier 4-6-0
4-6-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-6-0 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles in a leading truck, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and no trailing wheels. This wheel arrangement became the second-most popular...
designs such as the U class, seeking to rectify faults with those designs and improve efficiency and hauling power. Beattie created the initial design before passing it on to Chief Draughtsman G. A. Pearson to complete, and when the first members of the A class entered service in 1906, they were considered to be the country's most handsome locomotives.
The X class
After pioneering the Pacific wheel arrangement, Beattie went on to pioneer the 4-8-24-8-2
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-8-2 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and two trailing wheels on one axle...
Mountain type. The A class locomotives were not sufficiently powerful to tackle the steep grades on the North Island Main Trunk, and Beattie's solution was the 4-8-2 X class
NZR X class
The NZR X class was a pioneering class of eighteen 4-8-2 steam locomotives designed by A. L. Beattie that operated on the national rail network of New Zealand...
. Designed in 1908 for the opening of the Trunk, the first of eighteen Xs entered service on 9 January 1909, and they were some of the largest and most powerful locomotives in New Zealand.
Other locomotives
Beattie introduced a number of other classes during his term, though none so notable as the A, Q and X classes. These included tank locomotiveTank locomotive
A tank locomotive or tank engine is a steam locomotive that carries its water in one or more on-board water tanks, instead of pulling it behind it in a tender. It will most likely also have some kind of bunker to hold the fuel. There are several different types of tank locomotive dependent upon...
s such as 1903's WF class
NZR Wf class
The NZR WF class were steam locomotives designed, built and used by New Zealand Railways Department. Their wheel arrangement is described by the Whyte notation 2-6-4T and the first members of the class entered service in 1904. The locomotives were tank engines designed by the Railways Department's...
, 1910's WG class, and 1913's WW class. Beattie was also one of, if not the, first to employ the 4-6-4
4-6-4
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-6-4 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and four trailing wheels on two axles .Other equivalent classifications are:UIC classification:...
T arrangement - the 1902 conversions of three B class
NZR B class (1899)
The B class of 1899 was a class of steam locomotives that operated on New Zealand's national rail network. An earlier B class of Double Fairlies had entered service in 1874, but as they had departed from the ownership of the New Zealand Railways by the end of 1896, the B classification was free...
locomotives into the WE class and the WG and WW are some of the earliest examples in the world of the 4-6-4T arrangement.