The first locomotive in the Cape Government Railways (CGR) Consolidation type 8th Class, later to be designated the South African Railways (SAR) Class 8X, was designed by H.M. Beatty, the CGR's Chief Locomotive Superintendent from 1896 to 1910.
They were very similar to the earlier CGR Schenectady- and ALCO-built Consolidations, but with the boiler centre line raised by .