George Stephenson
English engineer; pioneered rail transport and standard gauge.
Victorians viewed Stephenson as a prime illustration of hard work and a desire for self-betterment, calling him the "Father of Railways".[1] The 19th century saw rail transport, which Stephenson pioneered, become a key technological breakthrough and a vital part of the Industrial Revolution.[2]
Quick Facts
- Born
- 9 June 1781
- Birthplace
- Wylam, Northumberland, England
- Died
- 12 August 1848
- Place of death
- Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England
- Occupation
- Civil engineer, mechanical engineer
- Resting place
- Holy Trinity Church, Chesterfield
- Spouse
- Frances Henderson (1802–1806)
- Elizabeth Hindmarsh (1820–1845)
- Ellen Gregory (1848)
- Children
- Robert Stephenson; Frances Stephenson (died in infancy)
Facts from the source article.
Life and work
In 1811 he successfully improved a faulty pumping engine at High Pit, Killingworth, and was promoted to enginewright for the collieries there.[3] Stephenson demonstrated his own safety lamp to two witnesses by taking it down Killingworth Colliery and holding it in front of a fissure emitting firedamp.[4] A local committee of enquiry exonerated Stephenson and proved he had been working separately to create the 'Geordie Lamp'.[5] George Stephenson came into the world on 9 June 1781 in Wylam, Northumberland, as Robert and Mabel Stephenson's second child; both parents were illiterate.[6]
Before turning 18, Stephenson could not read or write; he then paid for night school instruction to acquire literacy and arithmetic skills.[7] Employment as a brakesman at Black Callerton Colliery began for Stephenson in 1801, and the following year he wed Frances Henderson.[4] Following his wife's death from consumption (tuberculosis) in 1806, Stephenson left his son Robert with a local woman and traveled to Montrose, Scotland, for work.[3][8] On 27 September 1825, the Stockton and Darlington Railway commenced operations; Stephenson drove the locomotive Locomotion, which pulled an 80-ton load.[5]
What the cited sources add
A 2015 BBC article notes that Stephenson lived at Alton Grange, Ravenstone, from 1832 to 1838 while planning the Leicester and Swannington Railway.[9] The same source states that the railway Stephenson argued for carried coal from western coal fields around Snibston Colliery into Leicester.[9] According to the BBC report, Stephenson introduced new mining methods and safety measures that made Snibston one of the most efficient collieries of its time.[9] Samuel Smiles' 1862 biography records that Stephenson's prediction that railways would make travel cheaper for working men was already verified.[10]
References
- Wikipedia, "George Stephenson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Plaque unveiled for 'Father of Railways' George Stephenson", BBC, 9 December 2015 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "George Stephenson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "George Stephenson | Biography, Locomotives, & Facts | Britannica", 5 June 2023 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "George Stephenson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Samuel Smiles, "Lives of the Engineers: George and Robert Stephenson", 1862, p. 43 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "George Stephenson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Miner's lamp", University of Oxford (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "George Stephenson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Davies, "George Stephenson", Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1975 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "George Stephenson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Kirby, "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography", Oxford University Press, 1984 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "George Stephenson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Smiles, "Lives of the Engineers: The Locomotive: George and Robert Stephenson", John Murray, 1879, p. 23 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "George Stephenson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Robert Stephenson, Engineer 1803–1859", Northumbria Trail (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "Plaque unveiled for 'Father of Railways' George Stephenson", BBC, 9 December 2015. facts only, no text reused. bbc.co.uk
- Samuel Smiles, "Lives of the Engineers: George and Robert Stephenson", 1862, p. 43. facts only, no text reused. gutenberg.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article George Stephenson (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Notable Figures
Elsewhere in Historical Figures
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced