L. B. Billinton
Encyclopedia
Lawson Boskovsky Billinton was the locomotive engineer of the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway
from 1912 for ten years until his retirement in 1922.
He was born in Brighton
in 1882, the son of the locomotive engineer R. J. Billinton
, and was apprenticed to his father at Brighton works
. He served as a draughtsman and later district locomotive superintendent at New Cross
. In 1911 he was appointed the railway's Locomotive Superintendent to succeed D. E. Marsh
, after the enforced retirement of the latter.
Billinton was responsible for the design of a number of successful locomotive classes at Brighton including the E2
class 0-6-0
T, of 1912, the K
class 2-6-0
of 1913, and the L
class 4-6-4
T of 1914. In 1917 he was commissioned a Colonel in the Royal Engineers
and served in Romania
. He retired from the LB&SCR at the time of the formation of the Southern Railway
, aged 40 at the end of 1922. He took up fruit farming at Bolney
and died on 26 November 1954.
London, Brighton and South Coast Railway
The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1922. Its territory formed a rough triangle, with London at its apex, practically the whole coastline of Sussex as its base, and a large part of Surrey...
from 1912 for ten years until his retirement in 1922.
He was born in Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
in 1882, the son of the locomotive engineer R. J. Billinton
R. J. Billinton
Robert John Billinton was the Locomotive, Carriage, Wagon and Marine Superintendent of the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway from 1890 until his death.-Early career:...
, and was apprenticed to his father at Brighton works
Brighton railway works
Brighton railway works was one of the earliest railway-owned locomotive repair works, founded in 1840 by the London and Brighton Railway in Brighton, England, and thus pre-dating the more famous railway works at Crewe, Doncaster and Swindon...
. He served as a draughtsman and later district locomotive superintendent at New Cross
New Cross
New Cross is a district and ward of the London Borough of Lewisham, England. It is situated 4 miles south-east of Charing Cross. The ward covered by London post town and the SE 14 postcode district. New Cross is near St Johns, Telegraph Hill, Nunhead, Peckham, Brockley, Deptford and Greenwich...
. In 1911 he was appointed the railway's Locomotive Superintendent to succeed D. E. Marsh
D. E. Marsh
Douglas Earle Marsh was the Locomotive, Carriage and Wagon Superintendent of the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway from November 1904 until his early retirement on health grounds in July 1911.-Early career:...
, after the enforced retirement of the latter.
Billinton was responsible for the design of a number of successful locomotive classes at Brighton including the E2
LB&SCR E2 Class
The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway E2 Class was a class of 0-6-0T steam locomotives designed by Lawson Billinton, intended for shunting and short distance freight trains...
class 0-6-0
0-6-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-6-0 represents the wheel arrangement of no leading wheels, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and no trailing wheels...
T, of 1912, the K
LB&SCR K class
London Brighton and South Coast Railway Class K were powerful 2-6-0 mixed traffic locomotives designed by L. B. Billinton for the London Brighton and South Coast Railway in 1913. They appeared shortly before the First World War and the first ten examples of the class did prodigious work during...
class 2-6-0
2-6-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-6-0 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, usually in a leading truck, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and no trailing wheels. This arrangement is commonly called a Mogul...
of 1913, and the L
LB&SCR L class
The LB&SCR L Class was a class of 4-6-4 steam tank locomotives designed by L. B. Billinton for the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway. They were known as the "Brighton Baltics", Baltic being the European name for the 4-6-4 wheel arrangement...
class 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 of 1914. In 1917 he was commissioned a Colonel in the Royal Engineers
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....
and served in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. He retired from the LB&SCR at the time of the formation of the Southern Railway
Southern Railway (Great Britain)
The Southern Railway was a British railway company established in the 1923 Grouping. It linked London with the Channel ports, South West England, South coast resorts and Kent...
, aged 40 at the end of 1922. He took up fruit farming at Bolney
Bolney
Bolney is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester, near the junction of the A23 road with the A272 road. The parish has a land area of 1479.41 hectares...
and died on 26 November 1954.
Sources
- John Marshall, (1978) A biographical dictionary of locomotive engineers, David & Charles.
- D.L. Bradley, (1974) Locomotives of the LB&SCR, Part III., Railway Correspondence and Travel Society.
- Klaus Marx, (2007) Lawson Billinton; A Career Cut Short, Oakwood Press ISBN 9780853616610