Henry Edward Cusack (1865-1954) was a Locomotive Superintendent of the

Midland Great Western Railway The Midland Great Western Railway (MGWR) was the third largest Irish gauge () railway company in Ireland. It was incorporated in 1845 and absorbed into the Great Southern Railways in 1924. At its peak the MGWR had a network of , making it Irelan ...

(MGWR).

Life

Edward Cusack was born on 6 November 1865. He was educated at

Clifton College ''The spirit nourishes within'' , established = 160 years ago , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent boarding and day school , religion = Christian , president = , head_label = Head of College , hea ...

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, England. His father, Sir Ralph Smith Cusack was Chairman of the MGWR from 1865 to 1905 and his brother-in-law, Major Major James William Henry Claud "H.C." Cusack was Deputy Chairman of the MGWR from 1905. His mother was Elizabeth Barker He served a four-year apprenticeship with

Kitson and Company Kitson and Company was a locomotive manufacturer based in Hunslet, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Early history The company was started in 1835 by James Kitson at the Airedale Foundry, off Pearson Street, Hunslet, with Charles Todd as a part ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, followed by two years at Crewe, then returned to Ireland as a junior draughtsman in 1890. He married Constance Louisa Vernon in 1892. When

Martin Atock Martin Atock, also formerly known as Martin Attock, was an English railway engineer, who is best known as the Locomotive Superintendent of the Midland Great Western Railway (MGWR) from 1872 to 1900. Life Atock was born in June 1834 in Presto ...

announced his intended retirement from the MGWR Henry Edward Cusack was appointed his joint first assistant locomotive engineer with Basil Hope from the North Eastern Railway. Martin Atock's son, Thomas, was appointed as second assistant. Cusack rose to take the Chief Mechanical Engineers position from 1905-1915 and was replaced by the young draughtsman W. H. Morton who rose to support him.

Engineering

Cusack oversaw the introduction of MGWR Class D on the transition from his predecessor

. The first attributed locomotive to his era was the MGWR Class A, the largest 4-4-0 in Ireland at the time of its introduction in 1902. The smaller MGWR Class C 4-4-0 followed from 1909. His era also saw the MGWR Class B goods 0-6-0, an attempt at a larger freight engine. It is generally noted W. H. Morton is likely to have assisted Cusack with practical design input. Cusack was responsible for the design of a Royal Train prepared for the visit of

King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria a ...

and

Queen Alexandra Alexandra of Denmark (Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia; 1 December 1844 – 20 November 1925) was List of British royal consorts, Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 22 January 1901 t ...

in 1903 with a12 wheel saloon reputed to be the most luxurious in Ireland. As well as 6-wheel carriages he also designed the coaches for the MGWR "limited mail" express train in 1900. His coach designs typically had a distinct roof profile, somewhat flat for most of the top but tightly curved at the sides.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cusack, Henry Edward 1865 births 1954 deaths Locomotive builders and designers Midland Great Western Railway Irish civil engineers Irish people in rail transport Locomotive superintendents Irish railway mechanical engineers 20th-century Irish engineers 19th-century Irish engineers Engineers from Dublin (city)