Spotlight On:The Steam Locomotive

With the invention and improvement of the steam engine in the late 17th and early 18th Centuries, it was only a matter of time before it was put to work in transportation. This was first done by Richard Trevithick in 1804, who constructed the first working steam locomotive for use in the mining and iron-working industry. As time went on the design of the steam locomotive progressed and developed, most notably with the invention of the Rocket steam locomotive by George Stephenson in 1829. This more efficient model reached a top speed of nearly thirty miles per hour and was used exclusively on the Manchester Railroad for the transport of people and goods between Liverpool and Manchester, England. With these innovations, England's railway system began to rapidly expand, allowing for the easy and effective transportation of people, goods, and raw materials across the ever growing industrial nation.