George Stephenson

About George Stephenson’s life George Stephenson was an engineer. He built steam locomotives for the first railways. Sometimes people call him 'the Father of the Railway'. When George was 14, he helped his father at the coal mine. George took machines to bits, to see how they worked. He wanted to learn to read, write and count so he could get a better job. He went to school 3 nights a week after work. George's father was Robert Stephenson. His mother's name was Mabel Carr.

George Stephenson was born on 9 June His home was at Wylam, near Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Near where he lived there were coal mines. George's father worked at a coal mine. He looked after steam engines, used to pump water out of the mine. The Stephensons were not rich. George lived in a small cottage. The cottage is now looked after by the National Trust. Visitors come from all over the world to see it. George was interested in machines. He helped his dad. That's how he learned about steam engines.coal minessteam enginesNational Trust Early life

First railways Some steam engines drove machines in factories. One or two were made to run on wheels, along roads. Steam powered road engines were slow and could not go up hills. George worked out that a steam engine needed to run along rails. In 1814 he made his first 'railway locomotive'. In 1819 George was asked to build a small railway at Hetton Colliery. The track was 8 miles long. In 1820 George married again. His second wife was Elizabeth Hindmarsh.

The Rocket The Rocket had four wheels. It pulled a tender, a water tank on wheels. A fire burning coke heated water in a boiler to make steam. The steam power drove the wheels.tendercoke The Rocket could pull a train full of people along the new railway. Robert spent three years in South America, before coming home to help build the Rocket.

Father and son George Stephenson built many railways. His son Robert helped him. George paid for Robert to go to school, and to university in Edinburgh. Father and son did homework together, so George could learn more too. Robert spent three years in South America, before coming home to help build the Rocket.

When did he live George Stephenson was born in At this time Britain was starting to change from a land of farms and small villages to a land of factories and big cities. We call this change the Industrial Revolution. By the time George Stephenson died in 1848, its new railways and factories had made Britain the richest country in the world.Industrial Revolution

George Stephenson’s five pound note