|
|
|
|
Stephenson, George
| (1781-1848), British railway pioneer and first president of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE, 1850), built the first practical railway in 1825, the Locomotion on the Darlington to Stockton line. As chief mechanic at a colliery in 1813, Stephenson had built the Blucher, a locomotive engine that drew eight wagons (30 tons) of coal. To this design, he introduced steam blast that made railway locomotives truly practical. In 1829, his Rocket won a competition for the Liverpool-Manchester line, with a speed of 36 miles per hour (58km). He was born June 9, 1781, Wylam, Northumberland, England, and died Aug. 12, 1848, Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England. |
|
|
|
|
