George Stephenson
A British civil engineer and mechanical engineer who built the first public inter-city railway line in the world to use steam locomotives.
Most quoted
"I have been a good deal engaged in the last few days in making some experiments on the friction of waggons on railways, and I find that the resistance is much less than I had imagined."
— from Letter to Lord Ravensworth, 1813
"I have been accused of being a madman for attempting to run a locomotive at such a speed, but I am confident that the day will come when people will travel at fifty miles an hour."
— from Biographical accounts
"I have been much engaged in the last few days in making some experiments on the friction of waggons on railways, and I find that the resistance is much less than I had imagined."
— from Letter to Lord Ravensworth, 1813
All quotes by George Stephenson (251)
Give me facts, not opinions.
The locomotive engine will supersede the horse for all purposes of heavy draught.
I have worked my way from the bottom, and know every detail of my business.
The age of steam is only in its infancy.
There is no royal road to learning; no shortcut to the acquirement of any valuable art.
My business is to make the locomotive engine a commercial success.
The gauge of the railway should be suited to the traffic it is to carry.
I trust more to the work of my own hands than to the theories of other men.
A straight line is the best line for a railway.
The improvement of communication is the improvement of civilization.
I have never feared failure, for I have never ceased to try.
Contemporaries of George Stephenson
Other Engineerings born within 50 years of George Stephenson (1781–1848).