Beau

Beau is a mining engine with a moustache, who works near the Grand Canyon. He befriended Thomas during his journey around the world, after Thomas derailed outside of a mine.

Thomas & Friends
Beau was taking a freight train when he came across Thomas and Ace speeding towards him before an intersection. While he avoided the runaway, his train was uncoupled and sped after them. After the two derailed, Beau caught up to them and laughed at Thomas' request to find a breakdown crane as those weren't used in the area. Taking Thomas' driver and fireman as well as Ace's driver, he left to find people and horses to help them, not returning until the next day. Once the two were upright on the rails and on their way, Beau commented on the way they talked being funny to him.

Personality
Beau hails from the American Southwest. This gritty old-timer is able to help Thomas in a moment of need, fixing himself in Thomas' memory and making him forever grateful.

Basis
Beau is based on the Central Pacific Railroad's 4-4-0 locomotive No. 60; the 'Jupiter' which made history as one of the two locomotives (the other being the Union Pacific No. 119) to meet at Promontory Summit during the Golden Spike ceremony commemorating the completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad.

The Jupiter was built in September 1868 by the Schenectady Locomotive Works of New York, along with three other engines, numbered 61, 62, and 63, named the Storm, Whirlwind, and Leviathan, respectively. These four engines were then dismantled and sailed to San Francisco, California, where they were loaded onto a river barge and sent to the Central Pacific headquarters in Sacramento, then reassembled and commissioned into service on March 20, 1869.

The Jupiter was not the engine originally intended to take the special train carrying railway officials to the ceremony, the railway initially selected its 'Antelope' locomotive to perform this duty. However, that engine was struck by a runaway log while enroute to the ceremony and was damaged such that the Jupiter had to continue the journey with the specials' coaches coupled behind its regular train (which the special had been following closely behind prior to the accident), proceeding to Promontory with only the special train upon reaching the end of its regular route.

In the 1870's, the engines' name was dropped, and it received a new boiler, funnel, and other upgrades, drastically altering its appearance. In 1885, the Southern Pacific Railway had acquired the Central Pacific, including the former Jupiter, and in 1891, the engine was renumbered as Southern Pacific no. 1195.

In 1893, the engine was converted to burn coal, and later that year was sold to the Gila Valley, Globe and Northern Railway, becoming that railway's number 1, operating as such until scrapped in 1909.

Full-size, operating replicas of the Jupiter and Union Pacific No. 119 were built in 1979 by O'Connor Engineering Laboratories for the Golden Spike National Historic Site at Promontory Summit, Utah.

A replica of sister engine, No. 63, the 'Leviathan', was built in 2009 by David H. Kloke's firm, Kloke Locomotive Works of Elgin, Illinois.

Beau has been slightly modified from his basis with buffers above his cowcatcher (which is flatter and shorter to acommodate them) and behind his tender, which also has a screw-link coupling.

Livery
Beau's livery is based on the current one born by the Leviathan, as he is painted silver and red with gold lining. His boiler is painted silver, his cab is brown, and his wheels, tender and cowcatcher are red. His name and number are painted on the sides of his tender and cab respectively in yellow. Unlike the Leviathan, his lamp is gold instead of red, as is his dome.

Appearances
Television Series=

Specials

 * 2018 - Big World! Big Adventures!

Music Videos

 * Season 22 - The Journey Never Ends

Videos

 * 2018 - Meet the Characters!

Voice Actors

 * Kerry Shale (UK/US)

Trivia

 * Beau's tail-lamp is the same as James's temporary headlamp from James in the Dark.
 * Beau is the first engine in the television series to have a white moustache. He's also the second to have a white moustache, the first being Iron Duke.

Merchandise
Wood

Videos
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