Relying on incremental experiment rather than leaps into the unknown, Robert Stephenson (1803-59) forged an influential career as a highly respected railway and civil engineer. From the steam locomotive Rocket to the London and Birmingham Railway and the Britannia Bridge, his work helped to consolidate the foundations of the modern engineering profession. Based on the first-hand testimony of relatives and contemporaries as well as correspondence and official records, this 1864 biography by John Cordy Jeaffreson (1831-1901), published only five years after Stephenson's death, tells the story of this quiet industrial innovator. Five chapters by engineer William Pole (1814-1900) provide a more technical insight, examining some of Stephenson's most significant railway bridges and his involvement with the atmospheric system. Volume 1 traces his early life and the building of the London and Birmingham Railway. Volume 2 covers his advocacy of standardisation of the permanent way during the Gauge War, and his life as a bridge builder and politician.
- ISBN13 9781108070768
- Publish Date 20 March 2014
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country GB
- Imprint Cambridge University Press
- Pages 750
- Language English