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People

George Stephenson

He grew up illiterate on the Northumberland coalfields and redesigned the way humans moved across the surface of the earth.

1781–1848
Portrait of George Stephenson
Life Journey

From colliery worker to railway pioneer

Follow the story in a more continuous narrative, with a reading mode that matches how much depth you want.

1781

Humble beginnings

George Stephenson was born into a poor mining family in northern England, where limited schooling and hard labor shaped his early outlook and determination.