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The Liverpool & Manchester Railway is recognised as the first modern railway, but it almost never got off the ground. And the main reason might surprise you …

George Stephenson’s poor performance.

As engineer of the line, Stephenson had to brief parliament on it and he did so badly that… well, you’ll just have to listen to find out…

In the first of a two-parter on the birth of the L&MR we’re going to look at the struggle to get the idea for the line accepted, and how it almost fell at the first hurdle.

Listen to the episode now and find out what happened next…

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Show notes

• [1:00] Last week’s trivia answer!
• [1:56] Why Liverpool and Manchester?
• [5:51] The Bridgewater Canal
• [7:52] Railway proposed
• [9:10] William James
• [12:02] George Stephenson arrives on the scene
• [13:48] George and Robert Stephenson’s relationship
• [15:30] George Stephenson’s survey
• [16:59] Dirty Tricks
• [20:02] Bill submitted to parliament
• [22:05] George’s poor performance in committee
• [22:48] Chat Moss
• [24:35] Extracts from evidence
• [25:58] The committee’s decision
• [28:46] This episode’s trivia question

• LInk to Facebook

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Research and Reading List

These are some of the books and websites I used for research for this episode. Many are free resources on the internet, some you can buy for yourself … if you do fancy any of them, then buying them through these links is a great way to support the show at no extra cost to you ^*.

The two James’s and the two Stephensons; or The earliest history of passenger transit on railways by E.M.S.P. – Ellen Paine, 1861 Paine was William James’ daughter. Something worth bearing in mind when you’re reading this biography!

An Account of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway – Henry Booth, 1830

Liverpool and Manchester Railway, 1830-1980 – Frank Ferneyhough, 1980

Liverpool and Manchester Railway : a mile by mile guide to the world’s first “modern” railway – David Singleton, 1975

After the Canal Duke: A Study of the Industrial Estates Administered by the Trustees of the 3rd Duke of Bridgewater in the Age of Railway Building, 1825-72 – F.C. Mather, 1970

Proceedings of the Committee of the House of Commons on the Liverpool and Manchester Railroad bill: Sessions, 1825 – the full 800 pages of minutes from the committee hearings

An Accurate Description of the Liverpool and Manchester Rail-way The Tunnels, the Bridges, and Other Works Throughout the Line – James Scott Walker, 1830

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Images

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