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An act to incorporate a company to erect a rail-road from the river Delaware, near Trenton, to the river Raritan, at or near New-Brunswick.

Descriptive

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Rutgers University. Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives
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Digital exhibition
Label
All aboard! Railroads and New Jersey, 1812-1930.
AssociatedEntity
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curator
Name
Fowler, David J. (David Joseph).
AssociatedEntity
Role
curator
Name
Perrone, Fernanda.
AssociatedEntity
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project manager
Name
Radick, Caryn.
AssociatedEntity
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metadata contact
Name
De Fino, Melissa.
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Exhibition case
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Forms part of
Name
The Father of American Railroads
Detail
John Stevens (1749-1838) was the scion of a prominent family in colonial New Jersey. During the Revolutionary War he served as state treasurer. In the postwar period he became intrigued by experiments in steam navigation by men such as John Fitch. At his estate at Castle Point in Hoboken, Stevens devoted the rest of his life to experimenting with the application of steam to travel on water and land. Frustrated by the steamboat monopoly given to Robert Fulton by New York, he turned his attention to the new technology of railroads.
In 1812, he wrote the first American publication promoting the advantages of “steam carriages” over canals, which has been called “the birth certificate of all railroads in the United States.” He prevailed on the New Jersey legislature in 1815 to pass an act “to erect a Rail-Road from the River Delaware, near Trenton, to the River Raritan, at or near New Brunswick”—the first American railroad charter. The law said nothing, however, about what kind of motive power would be used. Stevens was not able to raise funds for the project. In 1825, at age seventy-six, Stevens built on his estate an experimental steam engine “for propelling a carriage on railways.” Guests were delighted to ride at six miles per hour on “the circle at the Hoboken Hotel.” Five years later, the Camden and Amboy Railroad was chartered, and his sons Robert L. and Edwin A. became officers in the fledgling company. When the John Bull locomotive arrived from England in 1831, the old inventor hosted a grand celebration at his estate. John Stevens had lived to see his vision realized.
AssociatedObject
Type
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“An Act to incorporate a company to erect a Rail-Road from the river Delaware, near Trenton, to the river Raritan, at or near New-Brunswick,” Acts of the Thirty-ninth General Assembly of the State of New-Jersey, … Being the Second Sitting (Trenton, 1815). The earliest railroad act passed in the United States. John Stevens was not able to raise capital to build the railroad, however.
TitleInfo
Title
An act to incorporate a company to erect a rail-road from the river Delaware, near Trenton, to the river Raritan, at or near New-Brunswick.
Name (type = corporate)
NamePart
New Jersy. Legislature. General Assembly.
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New Jersy. Legislature. General Assembly.
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1815
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TitleInfo
Title
Acts of the Thirty-ninth General Assembly of the State of New Jersey ... being the second sitting (Trenton, 1815). p. 68.
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TitleInfo
Title
All aboard! Railroads and New Jersey, 1812-1930.
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rucore00000002143
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Identifier (type = hdl)
http://hdl.rutgers.edu/1782.1/rucore00000002143.Document.000063056
Identifier (type = doi)
doi:10.7282/T3DR2TKQ
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Rights

RightsDeclaration (AUTHORITY = RU_Archives); (ID = RU_Archives_v1)
Rutgers University owns the copyright in this work. You may make use of this resource, with proper attribution, for educational and other non-commercial uses only. Contact the Special Collections and University Archives of the Rutgers University Libraries to obtain permission for reproduction, publication, and commercial use.
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Source

ProvenanceEvent
Type
Exhibition
Label
All aboard! Railroads and New Jersey, 1812-1930.
Place
Special Collections and University Archives Gallery.
DateTime (encoding = iso8601); (point = start); (qualifier = exact)
2011-10-27
DateTime (encoding = iso8601); (point = end); (qualifier = exact)
2012-01-06
AssociatedEntity
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curator
Name
Fowler, David J. (David Joseph)
AssociatedEntity
Role
curator
Name
Perrone, Fernanda.
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Exhibition case
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Case 2 : The father of American railroads.
Detail
John Stevens (1749-1838) was the scion of a prominent family in colonial New Jersey. During the Revolutionary War he served as state treasurer. In the postwar period he became intrigued by experiments in steam navigation by men such as John Fitch. At his estate at Castle Point in Hoboken, Stevens devoted the rest of his life to experimenting with the application of steam to travel on water and land. Frustrated by the steamboat monopoly given to Robert Fulton by New York, he turned his attention to the new technology of railroads.
In 1812, he wrote the first American publication promoting the advantages of “steam carriages” over canals, which has been called “the birth certificate of all railroads in the United States.” He prevailed on the New Jersey legislature in 1815 to pass an act “to erect a Rail-Road from the River Delaware, near Trenton, to the River Raritan, at or near New Brunswick”—the first American railroad charter. The law said nothing, however, about what kind of motive power would be used. Stevens was not able to raise funds for the project. In 1825, at age seventy-six, Stevens built on his estate an experimental steam engine “for propelling a carriage on railways.” Guests were delighted to ride at six miles per hour on “the circle at the Hoboken Hotel.” Five years later, the Camden and Amboy Railroad was chartered, and his sons Robert L. and Edwin A. became officers in the fledgling company. When the John Bull locomotive arrived from England in 1831, the old inventor hosted a grand celebration at his estate. John Stevens had lived to see his vision realized.
AssociatedObject
Type
Exhibition caption
Detail
“An Act to incorporate a company to erect a Rail-Road from the river Delaware, near Trenton, to the river Raritan, at or near New-Brunswick,” Acts of the Thirty-ninth General Assembly of the State of New-Jersey, … Being the Second Sitting (Trenton, 1815). This was the earliest railroad act in the United States.
ProvenanceEvent
Type
Related publication
Label
All aboard! Railroads and New Jersey, 1812-1930 : exhibition catalog.
DateTime (encoding = iso8601); (qualifier = exact)
2011
AssociatedEntity
Role
curator
Name
Fowler, David J. (David Joseph)
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