The International Steam Pages


Garratts in South America 

This page illustrates examples of articulated steam locomotives - click here for the introduction to Garratt locomotives.


Despite many mountain railways, many of which had strong British connections, the railways never ordered Garratts in quantity.

Argentina

Some 50 metre and broad gauge Garratts were supplied to various companies in this country, but all had vanished by 1970, although one was reported to be rusting away in Paraguay in 1977. However, when a new 500mm gauge tourist railway was established in the deep south of Patagonia at Ushuaia (The Train at the End of the World - FCAF - http://www.trendelfindelmundo.com.ar) they bought two brand new Garratts in 1994 and 2006 - see particularly http://www.martynbane.co.uk/modernsteam/smcmahon/smfcaf.htm (link dead by April 2015) for some interesting notes on these locomotives, also a  page on this site.

This is the first of these, #2 as built (left), and barely recognisable after rebuilding in 2001/2 (right):

Not surprisingly, it bears more than a passing resemblance to the new #5 (from Phil Girldestone's works in South Africa):

Bolivia

The FCAB (Antofagasta (Chile) and Bolivia) bought both Kitson Meyers (not surprisingly in South America) but also Garratts. Some of these survive here at the famous Uyuni graveyard, also FCAB 397 4-8-2+2-8-4 outside Potosi shed, where it was photographed by John Middleton in 2009:

Brazil

Small numbers were supplied to broad, metre and narrow gauge but the design never caught on here. This is Hose Beraldo's picture of metre gauge Henschel & Sohn 4-8-2+2-8-4, #612, preserved at the small railway museum at the Recife (PE) central station. It was supplied to the  Great Western of Brazil Railway in 1952, which latterly becomes Rede Ferroviaria do Nordeste and was taken over by RFFSA. I believe it is the only surviving Garratt in the country.


Rob Dickinson

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