Stephens

History

Origins and background

Richard Stephens was born in Wales in 1856. After a period of engineering work in the United States, he settled in Clevedon in 1888, where he worked as a steamroller driver for the local council before opening The Clevedon Cycle Depot and Refreshment Rooms on Old Street. The business expanded into cycle manufacture and mechanical engineering.

In the mid-1890s, Stephens, supported by local inventor and baronet Sir Edmund Elton, established the Stephens Engineering and Motor Car Works at The Triangle, Clevedon, with the aim of producing a motorcar using only British-made components.

Stephens's engineering work may have been connected with the local firm R. Stephens, Sons and Co, which specialised in mechanical and structural engineering during the same period.

The first motorcars

Stephens completed his first working prototype around 1898. It used a two-cylinder horizontal engine of his own design, belt drive to a countershaft, and chain drive to the rear wheels. The car featured a tubular steel chassis inspired by bicycle construction and incorporated independent front suspension—an advanced feature for its time.

Over the next few years, Stephens built several further vehicles, including two-seater dog-cart models, a six-seater taxi supplied to Bath, and nine-seater omnibus versions used on passenger routes between Clevedon, Weston-super-Mare and Cheddar Gorge.

Decline and later life

By the early 1900s, larger manufacturers had entered the market, making it difficult for small-scale operations to survive. Only around eight Stephens cars are thought to have been built before production ceased around 1902.

Stephens continued to operate his garage and engineering business until his death in 1938.

Historical significance

Stephens's enterprise predated the industrialisation of the British motor industry and demonstrated remarkable ingenuity. His attempt to build a car using only domestic materials and craftsmanship symbolised early British engineering independence.