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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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George Hudson
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(1800–71) Known as the 'railway king', he was the prime example of the fortunes that could be won and lost in the *railway mania of the mid-19C. A Conservative politician in York, he became chairman in 1837 of a company building a local railway. Its success brought him other companies and by 1844 he controlled more than 1600km/1000m of track. Shares soared in any enterprise with which he was involved, bringing him vast personal wealth. But in 1847 the market collapsed, revealing financial irregularities in his companies which led to his ruin.
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