H. P. M. Beames

Hewitt Pearson Montague Beames (9 May 1875 – 5 March 1948) was Chief Mechanical Engineer of the London and North Western Railway from 1920 to 1922.

Beames was born in Monkstown, Dublin in 1875, and educated at Corrig School, Kingstown, County Dublin, (now Dún Laoghaire), at Dover College, and Crawley's Military Academy. He then became an apprentice under, and pupil of, Francis William Webb at the Crewe works of the London and North Western Railway (LNWR).

A keen rugby union player, Beames played for Lancashire on several occasions, and was invited to tour Canada with the Irish national rugby union team, but was unable to go.

Between January 1900 and May 1901, Beames served in the cavalry in South Africa during the Boer War. He then resumed work at Crewe.

Between January 1902 and 1909, Beames was "Assistant to the Outdoor Superintendent, Crewe" who dealt with pumping, dredging and other dock machinery. From 1909 until the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, Beames was personal assistant to the Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) Charles Bowen Cooke.

On the outbreak of war, Beames joined the Royal Engineers' Railway Company with the British Expeditionary Force until he was recalled to Crewe to become "Chief Assistant and Works Manager, Crewe Works". Beames became Deputy CME in June 1919 and CME in November 1920.

Beames only produced one new locomotive, the LNWR 380 Class 0-8-4T for use in South Wales. He also reboilered the LNWR Claughton Class locomotives.

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