SEE THE WHOLE EDITION HERE: robertstephensontrust.com/Spring2024.pdf
Sunday 3 March 2024
Thursday 5 January 2023
Thursday 15 December 2022
Wednesday 26 September 2018
Monday 19 June 2017
The Book
This book reveals for the first time in nearly 200
years the details of Robert Stephenson’s great Colombian adventure. It sets out
the reasons behind his decision to abandon his father George, his friends and
the management of the embryonic locomotive factory in Forth Street, Newcastle
upon Tyne which bore his name and of which he was the Managing Director, for a
speculative venture in South America in which he would be responsible for
finding and extracting silver from mines first started during the Spanish
occupation. The year was 1824 and he had yet to reach 21 years of age.
Robert did not return to England until 1827, but that
event triggered a burst of creative energy and flair for a series of
ground-breaking locomotive designs, starting with the ‘Rocket’ in 1829 for the
competitive trials for the choice of engine for the Liverpool & Manchester
Railway which his father had engineered and constructed in his absence.
The narrative uses many extracts from Robert’s
original letters to his boss Richard Illingworth, who was based in Bogotá,
courtesy of the University of Indiana, whose Lilly Library holds the originals.
They describe vividly the difficulties he encountered, the anxiety he felt
about what was happening in England in his absence, the problems of managing
some of the workmen all of whom were from Cornwall, the lack of materials, the
regular bouts of illness, and the frustration with the Mining Company in London
who questioned his judgements.
On the journey home he was shipwrecked and very nearly
drowned.
The character of one of England’s greatest mechanical
and civil engineers cannot be fully understood without appreciating the impact
his three years in Colombia had on him. In his lifetime he played down the
trials and tribulations, but this new insight is essential reading for anyone
who wishes to understand how great men use adversity to advance their creative
brilliance.
The book is illustrated with the water colour
paintings of Charles Empson, who accompanied Robert as an interpreter and
companion. His own anecdotes have been included as a counter-point to Robert’s
more formal correspondence.
Most of the mineworkers were
from Cornwall, and there are many references to them, not always flattering.
The book describes their circumstances in the 1820’s and explains what
attracted them to sign up for 3 years and embark on a voyage to a far-away
country. Anyone who might have had Cornish ancestors in Colombia should read
this.
Friday 5 May 2017
Wednesday 3 May 2017
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