Guglielmo Cappa (1844–1905) was an Italian engineer who became Head of the Material and Traction Service of the newly formed

Italian State Railways Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane S.p.A. ( "Italian Railways of the State"; previously only Ferrovie dello Stato, hence the abbreviation FS) is Italy's national state-owned railway holding company that manages transport, infrastructure, real estate ...

(FS) in 1905.

Overview

Guglielmo Cappa was born in Garlasco, in the Province of Pavia on 21 July 1844. He attended high school and spent two years at University in Pavia. He then obtained a degree in engineering in Turin.

Career

In 1871 he was hired by the Società per le Strade Ferrate Meridionali and was engaged in the construction of the difficult line between

L'Aquila L'Aquila ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in central Italy. It is the capital city of both the Abruzzo region and of the Province of L'Aquila. , it has a population of 70,967 inhabitants. Laid out within medieval walls on a hill in the wide valle ...

and Sulmona. He later became Head of the Traction Division of the

Società per le Strade Ferrate Calabro-Sicule The Victor Emmanuel Railway (VER) was created on 25 May 1853 by decree of Victor Emmanuel II, King of Sardinia. After 1865 it took the name of Società per le Strade Ferrate Calabro-Sicule (SFCS). In 1867, the Savoy part of the system was transf ...

. In 1885 when the Sicilian railroads were broken up with the establishment of Rete Sicula, headed by Riccardo Bianchi, Cappa became the director of the Material and Traction Service. He was one of the main promoters of the establishment of the ferry in the Strait of Messina that began at the end of 1899. The work of the engineer Cappa was decisive in the design of new locomotives such as the RS Class 300, which later became the

FS Class 410 FS Class 410 were 0-8-0 steam locomotives which the Italian State Railways (FS) acquired from Rete Sicula (the Sicilian Network) on nationalization in 1906. History The class was designed by the Sicula Network Research Office led by enginee ...

, but his main work was the excellent RS Class 400 tank locomotives, later FS Class 910.[] These were designed for the difficult Messina - Palermo line with the demanding Peloritani pass. After nationalization, they were transferred to Milan where they gave excellent service on suburban trains. A characteristic of the locomotives designed by Cappa was the use of Walschaerts valve gear which became widely adopted by the FS. In 1905 Riccardo Bianchi, director of the newly constituted

Ferrovie dello Stato Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane S.p.A. ( "Italian Railways of the State"; previously only Ferrovie dello Stato, hence the abbreviation FS) is Italy's national state-owned railway holding company that manages transport, infrastructure, real estat ...

, wanted Cappa in Rome to direct the Material and Traction Service.

Family

Guglielmo Cappa was the father of Giulio Cesare Cappa, who became an automobile designer for the firm Aquila Italiana.

Death

In Rome, a tragic fate overtook Guglielmo Cappa a few months after his inauguration. On 1 September 1905, he was shot dead in his office in Via Boncompagni, by the Sardinian Giuseppe Cossu, who held him responsible for the lack of promotion of his son from stoker to driver.

Overview

Career

Family

Death

References

Further reading