£50.00
Jeremy Clements
Publication Date: 2023
Format & Edition: Hardback, First Edition
Pagination: 352 Pages, 346 Illustrations
Condition: New
Genre: Overseas Railways
Status: Sold Out
Beyer-Garratt by Jeremy Clements. From the 1830s onward, there were hundreds of attempts to design articulated steam locomotives of which only a tiny percentage achieved commercial viability. The last to join this exclusive band was the Garratt, a British invention which unquestionably proved to be the most successful.
The idea was born of engineer Herbert Garratt’s extensive experience with overseas railways that operated in difficult terrain and under challenging circumstances. Adoption by Beyer Peacock & Co Ltd, Gorton Foundary in Manchester, led to the type’s 1909 inauguration in Tasmania.
By the First World War, thirty one examples had been delivered or were under construction. This diverse group embraced seven wheel arrangements and five gauges from 2′ 02″ to 5′ 3″, with designs ranging from miniscule tramway engines to 8-cylinder high speed double-Atlantics.
The 1920s saw progressive size increases culminating in eight-coupled giants that handled vast tonnages on five continents. With expiry of the original patent and product re-styling as the Beyer-Garratt, Gorton Foundary fought off challenges to its market leadership and during World War Two played a pivotal role in military rail transport. Post-war, the type accounted for the majority of Beyer Peacock’s steam production.
This is a story of courage, creativity, superb engineering and adventure in the cause of mankind’s most romantic form of transport.