London and North Western Railway Educated at
Liverpool College., at age 17, Ivatt was apprenticed to
John Ramsbottom at the
Crewe Works of the
London and North Western Railway (LNWR). He worked as a fireman for six months and held various positions there. He was made head of the
Holyhead Locomotive Depot in 1874, before being promoted to the head of the
Chester District.
Great Southern and Western Railway In 1877, Ivatt moved to
Ireland, and the
Great Southern and Western Railway at
Inchicore. In 1882, he was appointed to the post of locomotive engineer there, where he
patented a design for a sprung flap for vertically opening carriage windows that became ubiquitous.
Great Northern Railway In 1895, Ivatt returned to
England and was appointed Locomotive Superintendent of the
Great Northern Railway (GNR), succeeding
Patrick Stirling, with references from
Samuel Waite Johnson,
John Aspinall,
Francis William Webb and
William Dean.
Locomotive designs At the GNR, he became associated with the
GNR Class C1 (small boiler) and
GNR Class C1 (large boiler) 4-4-2 (
Atlantic) type, which he introduced to Britain. Ivatt was also the first to introduce
Walschaerts valve gear to Britain. Ivatt retired on 2 December 1911. He was succeeded as Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the GNR by
Nigel Gresley. ==Family==