Alfred Wolcott Gibbs

Alfred Wolcott Gibbs (October 27, 1856 – May 19, 1922) was a mechanical engineer in the railroad industry who attained the position of chief mechanical engineer of the Pennsylvania Railroad.[1][2] He was instrumental in the design of a number of important PRR locomotive classes, including the E6 4-4-2 "Atlantic" type, the K4s 4-6-2 "Pacific" type, and the L1s 2-8-2 "Mikado" type.

Biography

He was born in Fort Fillmore in what is now New Mexico,[1] and died of a heart attack at his home in Wayne, Pennsylvania.[2]

Alfred Gibbs was educated first at Rutgers College (1873–1874) and then at the Stevens Institute of Technology (1874–1878), graduating in mechanical engineering.[3] He joined the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1879 as an apprentice.[4]

Gibbs was appointed General Superintendent of Motive Power of Lines East in 1903, replacing William W. Atterbury.[5]

He was a hereditary member of the Aztec Club of 1847, representing his father General Alfred Gibbs.

References

1. Pennsylvania Railroad Technical and Historical Society (March 2005). "PRR Chronology: 1856 (March 2005 edition)" (PDF). Retrieved 2008-01-05.
2. Pennsylvania Railroad Technical and Historical Society (June 2004). "PRR Chronology: 1922 (June 2004 edition)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2004-11-03. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
3. Jesse C. Sell (1911). "Twentieth Century History of Altoona and Blair County, Pennsylvania, and Representative Citizens". Archived from the original on September 11, 2006. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
4. Hearings before the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce of the House of Representatives on H. R. 19795: To Promote the Safety of Employees upon Railroads: Ash Pan Bill. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office. 1908. p. 47.
5. Pennsylvania Railroad Technical and Historical Society (March 2005). "PRR Chronology: 1903 (Mar 2005 edition)" (PDF). Retrieved 2008-01-05.