Helen Tucker
Photo of Helen Tucker at Lemon Creek Bridge in BC courtesy of Doug Wilson.
The following memorial appeared in the April 1993 issue of Branchline.
In Memoriam. Helen Grace Tucker, P.Eng. (BRS Director)
"It is with the greatest regret that we inform the membership of the untimely death of Helen Tucker on February 12, 1993, after a lengthy and horrible battle with cancer.
Helen was an active member of the Society who will be sorely missed. Her work in an organizational role at the shop will be remembered for she, as a professional engineer, was organized, methodical and analytical, as well as practical. She will remembered for her equipment drawings and sketches and her accurate estimates of the material required fro complete a job. She will be remembered for her sense of humour, and her ability to exchange quip for quip with the best of us. Her absolutely filthy coveralls, which the guys threatened to steam clean, with Helen in them of course, are legend. She will be remembered for her procurement of tools and equipment with diligently collected Canadian Tire coupons.
Helen's ability to become "one of the boys" on our famous trip with steam locomotive 1201 from Ottawa to Saint John, N.B. in June 1989 will long be remembered by the other nine of us who were honoured to have her as a fellow crew member. She was a real hit with the CP and Canadian Atlantic Railway officials and crews alike who were taken back at BRS's lady "fireperson" in the cab of 1201, and in CP's and CAR's bunk houses.
At age 49, Helen has been taken away from us. She may gone she'll not be forgotten." (Duncan du Fresne).
Helen was the Dirty Hands Club Founder and also held the Secretary position on the Society's board.
Helen's professional career was as an Engineer with the Vehicle Dynamics Laboratory of the National Research Council of Canada (NRC).
At the NRC, Helen was a co-inventor of a Valve, a Flowmeter and a Viscometer. Below is a listing of the three patents she held with her colleagues.
Helen worked in diverse areas as Maglev systems, control systems for dynamometers, wheelchair stability experiments, and a major wheel and brake testing facility. (reference: Branchline July-August 1987)
| Number | Title/Abstract | |||
| US3952577 | Apparatus for measuring the flow rate and/or viscous characteristics of fluids Helen G. Tucker, John W. Tanney, William F. Hayes. An apparatus for measuring the flow rate and/or viscous characteristics of a fluid comprising a casing having a fluid passage, a fluid inlet cavity and a fluid outlet cavity, fluid pressure detecting means preferably at spaced positions along the passage, and fluid pressure indicating means for indicating the or each characteristic to be measured.... | |||
| US4003405 | Apparatus for regulating the flow rate of a fluid William F. Hayes, John W. Tanney, Helen G. Tucker An apparatus for regulating the flow rate of a fluid, comprising a casing having an annular or cone-shaped fluid passage, for radial flow (inwardly or outwardly) between an inlet and outlet which are spaced radially and form unobstructed flow paths.... | |||
| US4118973 | Apparatus for measuring the flow rate and/or viscosity of a fluid Helen G. Tucker, John W. Tanney, William F. Hayes. An apparatus for measuring the flow rate and/or viscous characteristics of a fluid comprises a casing, having a fluid passage which is elongated in cross-section with two parallel, opposed sides and has a flared entry portion leading to a portion of constant cross-section.... | |||
One of BRS' founding members, Duncan du Fresne was a renowned and much sought after railway historian. Dunc was an author and speaker on the days of steam on the railways, particularly Canadian Pacific where he worked as a locomotive fireman until 1957.