George Francis Train (March 24, 1829 – January 5, 1904) was a businessman, author, and an eccentric figure in American history.
Train was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1829. At the age of four he was orphaned in New Orleans after a yellow fever plague killed his family. He was raised by his strict Methodist grandparents in Boston, who hoped he would become a minister.
Throughout his life Train was engaged in the mercantile business in Boston and in Australia, then went to England in 1860 and undertook to form horse tramway companies in Birkenhead and London where he soon met opposition. Although his trams were popular with passengers, his designs had rails that stood proud of the road surface and obstructed other traffic. In 1861 Train was arrested and tried for "breaking and injuring" a London street.
Read George Francis Train's book, Young America in Wall Street, free from Google Books.
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