16th August 1819: Protesters killed in the Peterloo Massacre

On the 16th August 1819, the Peterloo Massacre occurred at St Peter’s Field in Manchester when a group of over 60,000 protesters were charged by cavalry.

8th October 1829: Robert Stephenson’s locomotive Rocket wins the Rainhill Trials

On the 8th October 1829, Robert Stephenson’s steam locomotive The Rocket won the Rainhill Trials and secured a prize of £500 and the contract for Robert Stephenson and Company to produce locomotives for the new Liverpool & Manchester Railway that opened the following year.

15th September 1830: William Huskisson killed on the Liverpool & Manchester Railway

The British MP William Huskisson died as a result of a fatal accident on the opening day of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway.