Fred Lightfoot Walker
Fred Lightfoot Walker (1880-1937)
1937 Obituary [1]
FRED LIGHTFOOT WALKER was managing director of John Lysaght (Aust.), Ltd. He was born at Chester in 1880 and was educated at Wellington College and Manchester Technical School. He served his apprenticeship from 1897 to 1903, the first two years being spent with the Phoenix Engineering Company, Chester, and the remainder with Messrs. Beyer, Peacock and Company, Ltd., Gorton Foundry, Manchester. He was then employed, for three years, in Glasgow as draughtsman and inspector by various firms, before joining Messrs. Sir A. M. Rendel and Robertson as head district inspector in sole charge of the firm's work in Gloucester, Bristol, and South Wales. He supervised the construction of large quantities of rolling stock for Indian railways. In 1909 he was appointed one of the three works managers at Messrs. John Lysaght's Orb Ironworks at Newport, Mon., where he also became personal assistant to the managing director. About three years later he was transferred to the Australian company, and took an important share in the development of the works at Newcastle, New South Wales. Subsequently he held consecutively the appointments of branch manager in New Zealand and at Perth, before becoming manager at Sydney. He was later appointed managing director.
Mr. Walker was elected a Member of the Institution in 1911. His death occurred on 14th August 1936.