John Saxby

John Saxby (17 August 1821 – 22 April 1913) was a British engineer from Brighton, noted for his work in railway signalling and the invention of the interlocking system of points and signals. He was later a partner in the firm Saxby and Farmer.

Saxby was born at Brighton on 17 August 1821 and in 1834 was apprenticed at the age of thirteen to a carpenter and joiner. In 1840 he was employed as a carpenter at the Brighton railway works of the London and Brighton Railway to make oak mile-posts, and where he designed a tool to automate their production. He later became the foreman of the carpenters and joiners, sawyers, pattern makers, plumbers, gas-fitters, and labourers at the works.

Two accidents took place on the London Brighton and South Coast Railway (LBSCR) during the early 1850s due to signalling failures. Saxby became interested in railway safety and invented an improved signalling lamp, giving considerable benefits and savings on the lamps then in use. He also invented a device for interlocking points and signals. In 1856 he was awarded a patent for this invention which was designed to act at once upon all the points and signals at a railway junction. Not only were the points and signals activated, but all the other signals in the system were locked against improper use.

The first interlocked signaling system was installed at the Bricklayers Arms junction, near the Old Kent Road in South London. It consisted of eight semaphore signals and six pairs of points controlling the routes in and out of London bridge Station and neighbouring goods yards, with linkages to a signal box.

In 1861 Saxby left the railway employment and started his own business at Haywards Heath to manufacture signalling apparatus. The following year he was joined in partnership by John Stinson Farmer, who had previously been an assistant to the manager of the LBSCR. Saxby and Farmer became the leading manufacturers of railway signaling equipment and established a works at Kilburn where they eventually employed 3,000 workers. The firm also established works at Brussels.

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