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All Aboard...
The overcrowded subways and the exquisite cross-country journeys that take us along the rails all stemmed from these seven individuals, whose tireless determination and inventions have made hopping on a train a preferred mode of transportation. For some, overcoming hardships such as poverty as well as illiteracy, their desire to make travel easier prove that defeating the odds is possible. So hop on board and take a visit to the past to see the way these pioneers have profoundly chugged into the travel industry and in our everyday lives.
John Stevens
Putting his infatuation for steam travel into good use, John Stevens' name profoundly echoes throughout the train travel industry for many reasons. In 1812, he established a publication, which has been acknowledged as "the birth certificate of all railroads in the United States," because it clearly states why steam carriages should be transported over canals.
If Stevens wasn't jotting information down, he was using his expertise as a lawyer to pass an act that would establish the first railroad charter in American history, which was a train ride from the Delaware River to the River Raritan. Even his home was transformed into an elaborate railroad in itself, when he built a steam engine that many of his guests were happy to ride in on his premises. And this invention helped modernize the way train travel exists today. After all, what else would you expect from an individual dubbed the "Father of American Railroads?"
John Thomson
The evolution of train travel involved the ingenious drawings of land surveyors. One of the most important figures during the beginning of American railroads was John Thomson. His definitive drawings of the first survey map displayed a "tramroad," which was used to help construct a wooden railroad that would be more ideal for everyday railroad excursions.
The map distinctively provided a journey that traveled along a tobacco tycoon named Thomas Leiper's mines on Crum Creek to his land on Ridley Creek. And as the father of John Edgar Thomson, one of the famous presidents of the Pennsylvania Railroad, John Thomson contributions to train travel became an important inspiration for his family and in railway history.
George Stephenson
When you've been dubbed the "Father of Railways," your name definitely deserves a mention on this list. George Stephenson was born into a poor family in 1781, and spent his early years tending to cows before working in the coal mines. But for Stephenson, nothing was better than getting his hands on an engine part or other mechanical equipment used for mining. Although he was quite skilled when it came to repairing engine parts, he was unable to read or write, therefore attending night school where he not only became literate, but honed a few skills in arithmetic as well.
Stephenson's road to building the first public railway and a slew of locomotives was not easy, but his life proves that with great determination anything is possible. That determination also compelled the engineer to take a lengthy walk to Scotland for a job in the mines.
Here, he was able to work with James Watt's steam engine, which was the best during this time. And when he heard the Wylam coal mine were getting a newly designed steam engine, he went to work and created the "Bulcher," which made its first successful chug on the Cilingwood railway in 1814. By 1830 he had a completion of an array of public railroads under his belt, which included the Stockton and Darlington railway as well as the Liver-Manchester railway.
James Watt
Home schooled due to an illness he developed as a child, no sickness could prevent James Watt from becoming the driving force behind the Industrial Revolution. Even as a child, Watt was fascinated by the steam that would rise out of a kettle, which later influenced the groundbreaking advancements he integrated in steam engines.
Though he was not an inventor of the locomotive, by studying the way they worked - especially when pumping water out of the coal mines - he was able to design a more efficient engine that would release less steam into the air. And this patent would allow him to build a successful engineering company that industrialized steam engines. His role in the train industry did not stop there. He furthered his innovations with the steam pressure, the double-action engine as well as the rotary engine. Even today, the name Watt resonates throughout the engineering field, particularly when measuring mechanical and electrical strength.
Richard Trevithick
Contrary to Watt, Richard Trevithick entered the steam engine industry a little differently. Yes, he did dabble in the way steam was projected out of the engine. But his creativity led him to invent the first steam-powered vehicle that allowed passengers to hop on board as well. Producing around 145 pounds of high-pressure steam into the atmosphere, Trevithick's "Puffer" made its first debut in 1801 uphill, and it was the strongest of its kind to carry passengers and cargo.
Also nicknamed the "Puffing Devil" this masterful creation was short-lived when it caught on fire a few days after its test run, but this defeat did not keep the pioneer down for too long. By 1804 he was making headlines once again with the first steam-producing train to ride on a track. With five cars packed with dozens of ironworkers with their iron in tow, it made a successful nine-mile run. Not long after, the train was also laid to rest after its rails broke because of the heavy cargo it was carrying.
John Curr
It's impossible to take a trip the past of rail travel without acknowledging the individual who invented the flanged railroad tracks. Constructed in an L-shape, the iron plates that he created were more affordable, and allowed men to transport coal underground without using horses.
This new idea was introduced during the 1760s, which replaced the wooded tracks that were in use during this time until metal rails eventually came into play. However, Curr's dynamic railway system spread through England, which were commonly referred to as "plateways" or "tramroads."
Thomas A. Scott
With an extensive knowledge of the railway system, Thomas A. Scott became the fourth president of the Pennsylvania Railroad during the height of the company's success. Even Lincoln took a liking to him, appointing him as Assistant Secretary of War, as he found it necessary to supervise and equip the railroads with supplies for troops during the Civil War. Scott also advised that the Lincoln should travel along the train tracks in order to stay out of harm's way during the war.
Although he was never able to see his dream of a transcontinental railroad become a reality, his belief in a better railroad system has deeply inspired train travel even to this very day.
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