Percy Sedgfield
Percy Sedgfield (c1869-1940)
1926 of the Central Uruguay Railway
1940 Obituary [1]
PERCY SEDGFIELD served his time as a premium apprentice at the Great Western Railway Works, Swindon, from 1885 until 1890, when he was appointed assistant to the locomotive superintendent of the Central Uruguay Railway Company, in Montevideo.
In 1899 he was appointed chief mechanical engineer to the same company, a post which he held until his retirement in 1930. He visited Mexico and the U.S.A. in 1912, in order to study the question of oil as fuel for steam locomotives. As a result of his report this type of fuel was adopted on the Central Uruguay Railway, where it has become standard practice. Mr. Sedgfield was the author of two technical papers, published in 1922 and 1927, dealing respectively with continuous brakes for goods trains, and locomotive derailments.
He died in Montevideo on 14th November 1939, in his seventy-first year. He had been a Member of the Institution since 1924.
1940 Obituary.[2]
Percy Sedgfield was for 32 years Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Central Uruguay Railway, and lived in Monte Video. He was educated in Parkstone, Dorset, and entered the Great Western Railway Locomotive Works at Swindon in 1885 as a premium apprentice under Mr. William Dean.
On completion of his experience with the G.W.Rly. in 1890, he obtained an appointment with the Central Uruguay Railway, supervising equipment of Locomotives and Rolling Stock, subsequently being made Assistant to the Loco. Superintendent. Eight years later he was appointed Chief Mechanical Engineer, which post he retained until, his retirement in 1930. Mr. Sedgfield was elected a member of the Institution in 1920 and for some years served on the local council of the South American Centre, being elected Chairman in 1924.
He was a generous contributor to the South American discussions and read two papers before the centre as follows, both of which received awards :—
- In 1922, “ Continuous Brakes with reference to use on Goods Trains;” published' in Journal 56; and
- In 1927, “ Some Notes on Unexplained Derailments/’ published in Journal 82.
Mr. Sedgfield was born on 26th April, 1869, and he died in Monte Video on November 12th, 1939, *n his 71st year.