George Stephen, 1st Baron Mount Stephen bare-footed stable boy, he became the richest man in Canada and closely associated with George V, whose wife, Queen Mary, was a lifelong friend and confidante of the second Lady Mount Stephen. In 1829, Stephen was born at Dufftown, Banffshire, in a cottage built by his grandfather. He was the son of William Stephen (b. 1801), a carpenter, and Elspet, daughter of John Smith, a crofter at Knockando, Moray. His mother was a first cousin of the philanthropic Grant brothers of Manchester, immortalised as the "Cheeryble Brothers" in Charles Dickens' book, Nicholas Nickleby. Stephen began life as a boy running
Dickens in America Miriam takes over the wheel. Miriam talks about the adulation that Dickens faced, but which he did not write about in "American Notes". We learn that Dickens and his wife were serenaded by students from Yale. And Miriam is too. Miriam tells us that Dickens was given an accordion on the trip and thereafter spent much time playing “Home Sweet Home.” We see Miriam playing an accordion. New Haven is also known as the City of Elms. Dickens calls Hillhouse Avenue the most beautiful street in America and we see some beautiful modern shots of the street. A replica of