The company was founded by Francis William Fox and Edwin Walker who opened an engineering works at Atlas Locomotive Works in Bristol in 1864.
They built four and six-coupled saddle tank engines for industrial use. They also built stationary engines and pioneered steam tramcars, the first being tested in Bristol in 1877.
Much of their output was exported.
By 1878 the company had had made over 400 small tank engines.
In 1878 they produced six narrow gauge 2-4-2 trench engines for the Royal Engineers at Chatham using Henry Handyside’s steep gradient apparatus. They also produced nine 0-6-0 saddle tank engines for the Somerset and Dorset Railway.
They were taken over by Thomas Peckett in 1880, becoming Peckett and Sons, Atlas Engine Works, Bristol. The company acquired limited liability some years later. By 1900 the two companies had built over 400 locomotives.
The oldest surviving Fox Walker locomotive is an 0-6-0ST of 1873 and the first locomotive of the Nora Bergslags Railway in Sweden. It was steamed at Nora, Sweden in 1982.
Preserved Locomotives
Three locomotives built by Fox, Walker & Co have been preserved in Britain.
|
Works No |
Built | Name | Type |
Location |
| 242 | 1874 | 3 |
0-6-0ST |
Bristol Harbour Railway/M Shed |
| 358 | 1878 | Minnie |
0-6-0ST |
Mangapps Farm Railway Museum |
| 410 | 1878 | GWR 1378 |
0-6-0ST |
Scolton Manor Museum & Country Park |
Preserved British Steam Locomotives 