Septimus Norris (1818 – 1862) was an American

mechanical engineer Mechanical may refer to: Machine * Machine (mechanical), a system of mechanisms that shape the actuator input to achieve a specific application of output forces and movement * Mechanical calculator, a device used to perform the basic operations o ...

and

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the loco ...

designer. He was the youngest of three brothers all active in the field — his eldest brother William Norris founded the

Norris Locomotive Works The Norris Locomotive Works was a steam locomotive manufacturing company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that produced nearly one thousand railroad engines between 1832 and 1866. It was the dominant American locomotive producer during most of ...

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, and Richard Norris took over the firm in about 1841. The other two brothers were primarily businessmen, while Septimus was an engineer. He worked for the Norris firm under William's management, but did not continue under Richard's; railway historian John H. White, Jr. believes animosity existed between Septimus and Richard. Septimus later worked for the Portland Company and the

Schenectady Locomotive Works The Schenectady Locomotive Works built railroad locomotives from its founding in 1848 through its merger into American Locomotive Company (ALCO) in 1901. After the 1901 merger, ALCO made the Schenectady plant its headquarters in Schenectady, Ne ...

. According to "The Original History of the Baldwin Locomotive Works, 1831-1923" by Paul T. Warner, as contained in "The Locomotives That Baldwin Built" by Fred Westing, the US patent for the 4-6-0 "ten wheeler" was issued to Norris in 1846, and Norris built then tested the first one in April 1847.

References

* 1818 births 1862 deaths Locomotive builders and designers People from Philadelphia Engineers from Pennsylvania {{US-mechanical-engineer-stub