Herbert Chambers
Herbert Chambers (1885-1937)
1937 Obituary [1]
HERBERT CHAMBERS held, during the last two years of his life, the position of personal assistant to the chief mechanical engineer of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, Mr. W. A. Stanier, M.I.Mech.E. Mr. Chambers was born in Derby in 1885 and received his technical education at Derby Municipal Technical College. In 1899 he commenced a seven years' apprenticeship in the works of the Midland Railway; he continued in the company's service after the formation of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, for practically the whole of the remainder of his career. From 1906 until 1911 he was employed in the locomotive drawing office at Derby, leaving to become senior draughtsman to Messrs. Beyer, Peacock and Company, Ltd., of Gorton Foundry, Manchester. He returned to Derby two years later, however, and re-entered the drawing office. From 1915 until the grouping of the railways in 1923 he was in charge of experimental work. Early in the latter year he was appointed chief draughtsman to the Midland Division of the railway and four years later he was made technical assistant and chief draughtsman to the chief mechanical engineer, to whom he was responsible for all technical matters concerning locomotives, and for the design of various new locomotive types. In 1934 he took over the additional duties of the carriage and wagon section, so far as design was concerned. Mr. Chambers was responsible for the design of modifications which were carried out to the standard three-cylinder compound locomotives, and for the supervision of the design and drawings of every modern type of locomotive put into service on the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, from the Royal Scot 4 6 0 type to the Princess class (4-6-2). He was concerned with the design of the first Garratt articulated locomotives for main line service in England; these were of the 2-6-0+0-6-2 type, and were provided with cylindrical coal bunkers, which were rotated in order to trim the coal.
Mr. Chambers was elected a Member of the Institution in 1927. His death occurred on 15th September 1937.