Frank Bottrill

Frank Bottrill was an Australian blacksmith and inventor, known for his giant Big Lizzie traction engine, thought to be at one time the largest in the world. It had a unique variant of the Dreadnaught Wheel design. Alternating bearing plates gave support to each wheel, allowing it to travel over soft ground without bogging down. This was an early attempt to solve the problem that was later addressed more effectively by the caterpillar track. After running into financial difficulty, Bottrill spent the later part of his working life clearing bush and hauling loads in the west of New South Wales and Victoria. Big Lizzie has been preserved, and stands in a small park in Red Cliffs, Victoria.

Frank Bottrill was born onApril 1871 into a Methodist family in Sturt, Adelaide. His father, John Lucas Bottrill, was a market gardener. His mother was Eliza Bottrill, ne Macklin. He apprenticed as a blacksmith, and worked in the Moonta and Wallaroo mines in South Australia, qualifying as a steam engine driver. He moved to Broken Hill, New South Wales, around 1889. In an early venture, Bottrill formed a steamengine company to transport supplies to Broken Hill and set out from Adelaide with his first vehicle. The engine became bogged down in the sand north of Morgan, to the north of the Murray River, and had to be abandoned.

Source: Wikipedia