John J. Coit

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John J. Coit shows the valve control he invented without an eccentric
John J. Coit as a conductor at the tender, his friend 'Shorty' Chase as a train driver in the driver's cab (both with bowler hats and a stoker with a peaked cap)

John J. Coit (* 1875 ; † September 21, 1910 in Panama ) was a train driver who built and operated four park railways in California .

life and work

John J. Coit working first as a mechanic - Master in Johnson Machine Works until he had to give up this job because of an acquired physical disability. He then built and operated the following park railways one after the other:

His oil-fired steam locomotive No. 1903 was 19 feet (5.80 m) in length over the coupling and 1295 mm (51 in.) From the top of the chimney and had a 2-6-0 wheel arrangement . This locomotive had some technical innovations, such as valve adjustment without an eccentric, which made the adjustment and maintenance of the valves much easier. The locomotive had automatic couplings and an oil burner for which John Coit had a patent.

The locomotive weighed 3,628 kg (8000 lb ) with the tender and 2,328 kg (5,134 lbs) without the tender. The tender could hold 780 liters (206 gallons ) of water and 322 liters (85 gallons) of heating oil. The weight of the locomotive was transferred to the rails on three coupled drive axles with a diameter of 463 mm (18¼ inches) and a leading axle, the wheels of which had a diameter of 254 mm (10 inches). The Vanderbilt boiler had an output of 25 horsepower at a maximum pressure of 10 bar (150 psi) . The cylinders measured 5 "by 7" with a 1 "stroke. This gave the locomotive a pulling force of 4.8 kN (1076 pounds ).

From July 1908 he worked as a train driver on the main line of the Panama Railroad while the Panama Canal was being built. He was employed by the Atlantic Division and lived in the Canal Zone near Culebra .

Fatal accident with the Gatún – Culebra work train

John J. Coit died on the morning of September 21, 1910 at the age of 35 when a work train derailed on the main line from Gatun to Culebra , and his stoker from the West Indies was seriously injured. About 60 m before bridge no. 47 the locomotive no. 500, which was pulling the work train, collided with a cow. The locomotive derailed and tipped over onto the neighboring track to the south. John J. Coit was killed instantly and his stoker was seriously injured. The track leading to the south was again freely accessible from 8:45 a.m.

John J. Coit was unmarried. His sister, CJ Stanton, 418 Solano Avenue, Los Angeles was the next of kin. His locomotive was later used on the Urbita Lake Railway and is still in service on the Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad today .

Patents

  • Trolley-pole controller. US 879034 A. October 20, 1906.
  • Air-brake mechanism. US 850564 A. November 15, 1906.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Peter Panacy: Venice Miniature Railway. A Brief History and Its Influence on the Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad.
  2. ^ Arthur W. Line: Model Railways - XIX. - Eastlake Park Scenic Railway, Los Angeles, California. The Model Engineer and Electrician, April 23, 1908. Pages 395 , 396 , 397 , 398 and 399.
  3. ^ Eastlake Park Scenic Railway (Lincoln Park), Los Angeles, California, 1904. ( Memento of the original from January 17, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.lincolnheightsla.com
  4. ^ Arthur W. Line: Model Railways - XIX. - Eastlake Park Scenic Railway, Los Angeles, California. The Model Engineer and Electrician, April 23, 1908. p. 397.
  5. ^ Arthur W. Line: Model Railways - XIX. - Eastlake Park Scenic Railway, Los Angeles, California. The Model Engineer and Electrician, April 23, 1908. p. 398.
  6. ^ Arthur W. Line: Model Railways - XIX. - Eastlake Park Scenic Railway, Los Angeles, California. The Model Engineer and Electrician, April 23, 1908. p. 399.
  7. ^ FC McCain: A Miniature Scenic Railway. Locomotive Fireman's Magazine. October, 1904.
  8. ↑ McCain FC: A Novel Valve Motion. Locomotive Fireman's Magazine. November, 1904.
  9. ^ A b c The Canal Record , Ancón , Panama , September 21, 1910, p. 3.
personal data
SURNAME Coit, John J.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Train driver
DATE OF BIRTH 1875
DATE OF DEATH September 21, 1910
Place of death Panama