Name: Railways and Waterways
Brand: Bruce D. Heald
SKU: 9780738500706
Price: 24.99 USD
Availability: InStock

Railways and Waterways

9780738500706

$24.99

The White Mountains and the area's many lakes, rivers, and waterfalls have long been an attraction for thousands of visitors to this most scenic mountain area in all of New England. In Railways and Waterways of the White Mountains, you will explore the wonders of the many historic bodies of water that have drawn visitors and settlers to the North Country for hundreds of years, offering a beautiful landscape and a wealth of natural abundance. Railways and Waterways of the White Mountains represents the history of the early railroads through the many villages and natural landscapes of the Notches. As you leaf through the pages within, you will witness the appeal and charm of the White Mountains in their infinite variety of scenery, inexhaustible in their resources and unlimited in their manifold combinations. During our reminiscent journey, you will travel up the Pemigewasset, Saco, and Ammonoosuc Rivers, and experience the brilliant landscape of the Franconia, Pinkham, and Crawford Notches via the early steam railroads of the late 1800s.

Railways and Waterways book cover featuring a steam locomotive at a riverside terrain with mountains in the background

Railroad Depots of Southwest Ohio

9780738584157

$24.99

Springfield was the original destination of the two oldest railroad companies to lay rails in Ohio, the Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad and the Little Miami Railroad. This would form the first rail link between Lake Erie and the Ohio River. Other routes became more important as rails eventually spread like spokes of a wheel from Cincinnati, and connections were made to Akron, Chicago, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Indianapolis, Lexington, Louisville, Marietta, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, and Toledo as well as many other cities by the late 1800s. Hundreds of depots were erected to serve train travelers, ranging from the smallest shelter to the standard combined passenger-freight building to the major city passenger terminal. Cincinnati, Dayton, and Springfield became railroad centers, and towns like Blanchester, Hamilton, Loveland, Middletown, Morrow, Wilmington, and Xenia, served by more than one line, became busy transfer points. With the decline of rail passenger service, depots became unnecessary—many were demolished. Railroad Depots of Southwest Ohio presents a pictorial look at a sampling of these grand structures when they were in their prime.

Cover image for Railroad Depots of Southwest Ohio, isbn: 9780738584157

Cleveland and Its Streetcars

9780738539676

$24.99

Cleveland and Its Streetcars takes the reader back to when railway cars dominated the local street scene. The book focuses on the era of 1910-1954, from the time that Cleveland Railway Company took over operation of the consolidated streetcar lines to the day that the last streetcar rumbled over the city's streets. Cleveland's trailer trains, articulated cars, and its Peter Witt car model were widely admired by the nation, and the streetcar reigned supreme through the end of World War II. In 1942, the Cleveland Transit System (CTS) took over the streetcar lines, and eager to "modernize" its fleet, it decided to replace the streetcars with buses, trackless trolleys, and a crosstown rapid transit line. After the end of the war, in May 1945, the first post-war conversion took place. Then the pace of replacing the streetcars with rubber-tired vehicles quickened. By 1954, the task was complete. This book, with over 200 photographs, documents this changing Cleveland scene--when a wonderful era in transportation flourished and then, sadly, disappeared.

Book cover for Cleveland and Its Streetcars from Images of America showing a busy early 20th century city street with streetcars.

Railroad Depots of Northwest Ohio

9780738534015

$24.99

Chartered as early as 1832, Northwestern Ohio railroads were among the first in the Midwest. Toledo, a rapidly developing lake port at the mouth of the Maumee River, was the destination point for many lines; others were just passing through on their way to Chicago and points west. By 1907, 20 lines served the northwestern counties. All had a series of stations along their lines, often with depots or other railroad structures. Although many have come and gone, Northwest Ohio was once home to over 250 passenger or combination depots serving the traveling public. Railroad Depots of Northwest Ohio relives the golden age of railroad travel through vintage postcards and mid-20th century photos of selected depots and related structures.

Cover image for Railroad Depots of Northwest Ohio, isbn: 9780738534015

Lincoln

9781467108188

$23.99

The village of Lancaster became the state of Nebraska’s first capital city in 1867, renamed Lincoln. Not everyone predicted its success. One early observer noted: “There are no roads leading to it now. It has no commerce and there is scarcely a wagon load of produce raised annually within ten, perhaps twenty miles of it.” These postcards from the authors’ collections tell a different story in 200-plus images of a city that not only survived but thrived. Most of these images are from postcards’ heyday in the first quarter of the 20th century. Many show buildings and places still recognizable a century later, while some depict less familiar scenes now lost.

Cover image for Lincoln, isbn: 9781467108188

Railroads of Dubuque

9780738539577

$24.99

The city of Dubuque, settled on the west side of the Mississippi River in 1833, has historically been home to four major railways and numerous trolleys and passenger trains. Dubuque's railroad legacy was precipitated by local resident John Plumbe Jr., "the Father of the Transcontinental Railroad," who proposed a transcontinental railroad in 1838 and promoted the idea throughout the Midwest. The Illinois Central Railroad first reached the east bank of the Mississippi in 1855, followed by the Milwaukee Road, the Chicago and Great Western, and the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroads. This book uses rare photographs and historical text to chronicle the development and heyday of these four pioneering railways, as well as Dubuque's many trolleys and its two funicular railroads. While the glory days of Dubuque's railroads may have passed, the legacy they brought to the city lives on, and is evident in the Fourth Street Elevator, which remains the world's shortest, steepest railroad.

Cover of Railroads of Dubuque featuring a vintage streetcar and crowd at Union Park

Buffalo's Historic Streetcars and Buses

9780738557502

$24.99

Buffalo has witnessed the evolution of mass transportation through the decades, from the International Railway Company's streetcars in 1902 to the formation of the Niagara Frontier Transit System (NFT) Metro in 1974. The Great Gorge Route, the world's most famous scenic electric railway, offered passengers unparalleled views of Niagara Falls. By 1950, the NFT became known as one of the most progressive and profitable bus transportation networks in America. In 1985, following mergers between transport companies, streetcars were reinstated, bringing public transportation full circle. After over a century of innovation, Buffalo's mass transportation has proven to be a lasting and venerated testament to the history of the region. Buffalo's Historic Streetcars and Buses is a tribute to the people and equipment that serviced this great city for generations.

Book cover for Buffalo's Historic Streetcars and Buses showing sepia streetcars and a bus on a downtown Buffalo street.

Erie Railroad's Newburgh Branch

9781467120968

$24.99

For over 130 years, the Erie Railroad's Newburgh branch was a key factor in the economic and social life of the city of Newburgh, New York, and the towns that had stations along its 19-mile route between Newburgh and the Erie main line. Only five miles of this once vital rail link survive today. Looking at this lightly used rail spur today, the casual passerby would have no hint of the rich history that can be seen for only a moment from the car window. Erie Railroad's Newburgh Branch will take both dedicated and new railfans back to the days when rail travel was every town's modern mode of transport as well as its economic lifeblood. It was a simpler time, before the age of air travel and America's love affair with a new invention called the automobile.

Cover image for Erie Railroad's Newburgh Branch, isbn: 9781467120968

Hershey Transit

9780738598307

$24.99

When Milton S. Hershey broke ground to construct his new chocolate factory in 1903, many questioned the wisdom of building in the middle of a cornfield. With his factory wedged between the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad tracks and the Berks & Dauphin Turnpike, Hershey set out to create a first-rate street railway system. The Hershey Transit Company existed many years after the trolley industry declined in most areas of the United States. It was the chief mode of travel for the chocolate factory workers, vital to dairy farmers for transport of fresh milk to the factory, and essential to students of the Hershey Industrial School housed in surrounding farms. On the weekends, the transit system brought people from outlying areas into Hershey, Pennsylvania, to enjoy the theater or the famous Hershey Park for employee picnics, family outings, or special occasions. Hershey Transit documents one of the best-known and well-kept streetcar systems, started by Milton S. Hershey and operated from 1904 to 1946.

Cover image for Hershey Transit, isbn: 9780738598307

Rails around Westchester County

9781467102896

$24.99

Developed by a stagecoach maker in lower Manhattan, Westchester County's first railroad, the New York & Harlem Railroad, arrived in the 1840s. Since commuting by train allowed convenient short travel, its arrival accelerated growth and commerce throughout the county due to New York City's proximity. Within the same decade, the New Haven Railroad arrived in Westchester from New England, followed by the upstate-backed Hudson River Railroad in 1849. At its peak in 1930 and on the eve of the Great Depression, Westchester County maintained as many as eight rail lines and branches. Today, three of the county's original rail lines, the Harlem line, the New Haven line, and the Hudson line, are still in use and as busy as ever.

Cover image for Rails around Westchester County, isbn: 9781467102896

The Memphis, Clarksville & Louisville Railroad

9781467143462

$21.99

The Memphis, Clarksville & Louisville Railroad is a perfect example of rail lines in the mid-nineteenth century. Chartered in 1852, the line ran from Paris, Tennessee, to the Kentucky state line and connected with two other routes to create a seamless link between Memphis and Louisville. It shortened the travel time between major economic cities, but its ability to make money didn’t match its founders’ aspirations. Its detractors ridiculed the route as “beginning in the woods and ending in a hollow tree.” Following the Civil War, the railroad revitalized the line, only to run out of money and largely fade away. Author Todd DeFeo recounts the fascinating story of a historic line.

Cover image for The Memphis, Clarksville & Louisville Railroad, isbn: 9781467143462

Boulder City

9781467107501

$23.99

During the midst of the Great Depression, Boulder City came to life due to the Boulder Dam project, which offered people a path of hope. This wonderful town’s heritage does not end at its buildings or sites, for they are just the icing to a richer culture. Standing in present time with images of their past will allow those in the community or newcomers a fresh view on the preservation efforts and care that Boulder City represents.

Cover image for Boulder City, isbn: 9781467107501

Northwestern Pacific Railroad

9780738531212

$26.99

The Northwestern Pacific Railroad--the Redwood Empire Route--once stretched its shining track from Humboldt Bay to San Francisco Bay. Created by the amalgamation of 42 different companies, the North Coast railroad network ranged from the Sonoma Prismoidal, an early wooden monorail, to broad-gauge logging lines built to be hauled by horses. In between were the two-foot Sonoma Magnesite Railroad, the narrow-gauge North Pacific Coast, and standard-gauge lines. Determining the route of major highways, this versatile transportation system also incorporated electric interurbans, ferry steamboats, sternwheel riverboats, tugs, car floats, and unusual connectors like funiculars and scenic tourist railways. From the time of its formation in 1907 until the 1970s, Northwestern Pacific trains and boats were loaded with passengers and freight.

Northwestern Pacific Railroad historical society book cover featuring a vintage steam locomotive

Alaska's Tanana Valley Railroads

9780738596679

$24.99

In a region desperate for transportation to rich, gold-bearing creeks, the narrow-gauge Tanana Mines Railroad was built over permafrost, bogs, and hills to carry miners and supplies in 1905. Reorganized as the Tanana Valley Railroad, this little line promised the survival of both gold mining and Fairbanks until Fairbanks's economic base broadened. The railroad, built with Klondike Gold Rush earnings, prospered for only a few years and was acquired by the Alaska Railroad. The narrow-gauge survived 25 years, serving as the terminus for the Alaska Railroad and ensuring the development of Interior Alaska.

Alaska's Tanana Valley Railroads book cover showing a vintage steam locomotive and railroad workers in sepia.

Hidden History of Transportation in Los Angeles

9781626196711

$23.99

Los Angeles transportation's epic scale--its iconic freeways, Union Station, Los Angeles International Airport and the giant ports of its shores--has obscured many offbeat transit stories of moxie and eccentricity. Triumphs such as the Vincent Thomas Bridge and Mac Barnes's Ground Link buspool have existed alongside such flops as the Santa Monica Freeway Diamond Lane and the Oxnard-Los Angeles Caltrain commuter rail. The City of Angels lacks a propeller-driven monorail and a freeway in the paved bed of the Los Angeles River, but not for a lack of public promoters. Horace Dobbins built the elevated California Cycleway in Pasadena, and Mike Kadletz deployed the Pink Buses for Orange County kids hitchhiking to the beach. Join Charles P. Hobbs as he recalls these and other lost episodes of LA-area transportation lore.

Cover image for Hidden History of Transportation in Los Angeles, isbn: 9781626196711

San Angelo and Arthur Stilwell's Dream of Steam

9781467153492

$23.99

The Story of the Railroad Visionary Who Put San Angelo on the Map.

Over 100 years ago, Arthur Stilwell built 2,300 miles of railroad, founded 40 cities, and added $1 billion to the US economy. He was a visionary. He was controversial. He picked San Angelo for a main depot on his Kansas City, Mexico and Orient railway line. But he hadn’t counted on the Mexican Revolution and challenging characters like the revolutionista general, Pancho Villa. Meanwhile, San Angelo wrestled with neighboring Texas town Sweetwater for the right to host the depot. Dr. Linda Thorsen Bond sorted through scores of sources to piece together the fascinating fragments of Stilwell’s dream of steam.

Cover image for San Angelo and Arthur Stilwell's Dream of Steam, isbn: 9781467153492

Eastern Shore Railroad

9780738542430

$24.99

In the 1880s, New York railroad magnate Alexander Cassatt looked at a map of America's East Coast and decided that he could overcome a challenge of geography if he thought of a new railroad in a non-traditional way. North and South were now trading with each other postwar, and the two most
prominent coastal cities of those regions, New York and Norfolk, were less than 500 miles apart--except for one very large problem: at the end of a straight route down the Eastern Shore of Virginia lay the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, with more than 20 miles of open water to the rail yards
of Norfolk. Thus Cassatt created the New York, Philadelphia, & Norfolk Railroad, which ran overland from Philadelphia to Cape Charles, Virginia; at Cape Charles, the railroad became waterborne on barges and passenger
ferries that traveled the rough waters at the mouth of the bay. Now known as the Eastern Shore Railroad, since 1884, the operation has followed a path through history that has been no less dramatic than the rise and fall--and curves in the rightof-way--of American railroading during that time.

Cover image for Eastern Shore Railroad, isbn: 9780738542430

Washington & Old Dominion Railroad

9780738597928

$24.99

Discover the contribution and history of the Washington & Old Dominion Railroad through pictures from the earliest days of building and development.

The Alexandria, Loudoun & Hampshire Railroad laid track from Alexandria through Fairfax County and into Loudoun County towards the coalfields of West Virginia. In 1900, the Southern Railway, which had taken over the line, extended the railroad into Bluemont on the east side of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The Washington & Old Dominion Railway leased the Southern Railway's line in 1912, went into receivership in 1932, and was reorganized into the Washington & Old Dominion Railroad in 1935. The employees excavated the roadbed by hand, built stations and electric locomotives, reconfigured passenger cars, replaced diesel motors, and rebuilt bridges. Eventually, public roads and a lack of shipping and receiving industries forced the railroad into abandonment. Through old photographs, Washington & Old Dominion Railroad explores the efforts that went into building, operating, and maintaining the railroad whose right-of-way has now become the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority's Washington & Old Dominion Railroad Regional Park.

Cover of Washington & Old Dominion Railroad showing a vintage railcar on a tree lined track.

Eastern Kentucky Railway

9780738552767

$24.99

In 1865, as the Civil War was drawing to a close, plans were underway in Boston for a railroad construction project to begin in Greenup County, Kentucky. Eventually the Eastern Kentucky Railway Company would extend its main track through two more counties, Carter and Lawrence. Spanning just 36 miles of main track from Riverton to Webbville, the
Eastern Kentucky Railway became a lifeline for the economic and social activities of the people of northeastern Kentucky. Even though the original plan of extending the railway much farther south and bridging the Ohio River to the north never came about, the railway struggled along for more than 65
years. Many people who grew up along the line passed their experiences to younger generations; some, like Jesse Stuart, wrote about them. This volume will show life along the rail line that lent its name to the highways now running its route.

Cover of Eastern Kentucky Railway from Images of Rail showing a man signaling on railroad tracks beside a wooden shed.

Nashville's Streetcars and Interurban Railways

9781467116862

$24.99

Nashville's 150-year public transportation heritage is a rich and colorful one that began in 1866 when two private companies, the McGavock and Mount Vernon Horse Railroad Company and the South Nashville Street Railroad Company, commenced operation. The first cars were mule powered. During the 1880s, as streetcar routes became longer and too strenuous for animal power, steam dummy lines were introduced. On April 30, 1889, Nashville became one of the earliest cities served by electric street railways, developing a 70-mile system by 1915. In addition to its advanced streetcar system, Nashville was also served by two interurban railway systems. Over time, improved roads and affordable cars caused ridership on public transportation to drop rapidly. By February 1941, buses had replaced the last of the city's aging streetcars. The traction era had come to an end.

Cover image for Nashville's Streetcars and Interurban Railways, isbn: 9781467116862

Sumpter Valley Railway

9780738571256

$24.99

In July 1890, David Eccles and Charles Nibley chartered the Sumpter Valley Railway and changed the social and physical landscape of Eastern Oregon forever. The Sumpter Valley Railway and its parent company, the Oregon Lumber Company, became an economic engine that shaped the lives of generations of Eastern Oregonians. The rails stretched from Baker to Prairie City, Sumpter to Susanville, and laced ribbons of steel through the Powder River Valley and Elkhorns. This photographic history is a view into the life and times of a varied, interesting, and living railroad that was instrumental in the shaping of Eastern Oregon.

Vintage sepia photo of two railroad workers beside a Sumpter Valley Railway steam locomotive

Boston & Maine in the 19th Century

9780738505466

$24.99

All the romance of early railroading in northern New England pervades Boston & Maine in the 19th Century. This fascinating journey begins in the 1830s with an 8-mile line that just kept growing. By the end of the century, Boston & Maine was traveling over 2,324 miles of track. This first pictorial history of the Boston & Maine explores the heyday of an enterprising railroad. Using spectacular images, most of which have never before been published, the book takes us along scenic stretches of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine.

Cover image for Boston & Maine in the 19th Century, isbn: 9780738505466

East Branch & Lincoln Railroad

9781467128629

$24.99

Built by James Everell Henry, the East Branch & Lincoln Railroad (EB&L) is considered to be the grandest and largest logging railroad operation ever built in New England. In 1892, the mountain town of Lincoln, New Hampshire, was transformed from a struggling wilderness enclave to a thriving mill town when Henry moved his logging operation from Zealand. He built houses, a company store, sawmills, and a railroad into the East Branch of the Pemigewasset River watershed to harvest virgin spruce. Despite the departure of the last EB&L log train from Lincoln Woods by 1948, the industry's cut-and-run practices forever changed the future of land conservation in the region, prompting legislation like the Weeks Act of 1911 and the Wilderness Act of 1964. Today, nearly every trail in the Pemigewasset Wilderness follows or utilizes portions of the old EB&L Railroad bed.

Cover image for East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, isbn: 9781467128629

Boston & Maine Trains and Services

9780738538754

$24.99

The Boston & Maine Railroad serviced most of New England as a primary mode of transportation during the 19th and 20th centuries.

The birth of this railroad spurred the growth and development of industry in New England. This heritage is captured in Boston & Maine Trains and Services, the fourth volume in Arcadia's Images of Rail series to focus on the history of this railroad. The trains and services included in this book are the Pullman passenger cars, work trains with flatcars, boxcars, circus trains, plows, stock, cabooses, as well as the Boston & Maine bus service, trucks, and air service.

Boston & Maine Trains and Services book cover with a vintage train yard and a signaling conductor.

The Granger Railroads of Wisconsin

9781467157827

$24.99

A contest between grassroots activism and corporate greed

In one of the great political and economic movements of the nineteenth century, a fraternal organization of Midwest farmers permanently changed the trajectory of American railroads. When rising shipping rates threatened their ability to get their crops to market, these small farmers banded together to form the National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry. Deftly handling the levers of power in their clash with robber barons, the organization’s pattern of regulation all but controlled the development of national rail policies for more than a century.

Historian Daniel Faas details the history of the Grange Movement and its role in shaping the Midwest and the modern American rail system.

Cover image for The Granger Railroads of Wisconsin, isbn: 9781467157827

Detroit's Street Railways

9780738540276

$24.99

Detroit's Street Railways tells the story of public transportation in the Motor City. Dating back to 1863, when horse-drawn streetcars serviced the citizenry, public transportation in Detroit has a proud and colorful history. Early on, a host of streetcar companies carried Detroiters about their daily business. This period was followed by consolidation into one company, the Detroit United Railway, and later the establishment of the municipally owned Department of Street Railways. The Department of Street Railways, established May 15, 1922, inherited a vast system of streetcar lines throughout Detroit, the first city in the United States to establish municipally owned transit system. It was a leader and innovator in the transit industry, with continued streetcar service until April 8, 1956, when the last streetcars on Woodward Avenue were replaced by buses. When the Department of Street Railways began coach operations in 1925, the intent was to provide feeder service to the established streetcar lines, as expansion costs were prohibitive. Sadly, the program implemented to complement the city's streetcar operations led to the demise of the streetcar as the principal mode of transportation in the Motor City.

Detroit's Street Railways cover with a vintage streetcar on a city street

The Burlington Railroad

9781467112970

$24.99

Alliance has been a railroad center ever since the Burlington Railroad established the city in 1888 while pushing tracks into the vast, open regions of Nebraska, South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, and Montana. As a hub for trains carrying a variety of agricultural and mining products to market, Alliance became headquarters in 1902 for the large and geographically diverse area of Burlington train operations called the Alliance Division. For 86 years, the Alliance Division controlled much of the region's rail traffic. Despite the loss of its division point status in 1988, Alliance continues to have its fortunes closely tied to the railroad, now known as the Burlington Northern & Santa Fe. Today, the BNSF funnels large numbers of coal trains through the city while transporting Power River Basin coal to power plants across the nation.

Cover image for The Burlington Railroad, isbn: 9781467112970

Rails Around the Thumb

9780738592169

$24.99

Discover how important railroads once were to Michigan's Thumb region in this wonderful collection of images. Although the area is best known for its agrarian roots, the railroad operations were involved in so much more, from light industries that fed the auto industry to shipments of fish from Saginaw Bay into eastern markets.Return to a time when everyone knew the route of the Polly-Ann, local citizens identified the time of day by the sound of a train whistle, and the arrival of a train crew nearly doubled a town's population. Many of the images in this book have never been seen before, or, if so, only in a family's living room, soon to be returned to grandpa's trunk in the attic. These images surfaced to introduce future generations to what railroading in the Thumb once was. In an age when many of these railroad lines have disappeared, it can be hard to believe how many once crisscrossed this area.

Cover image for Rails Around the Thumb, isbn: 9780738592169

Rockford & Interurban Railway

9781467112390

$24.99

With today's America dominated by the automobile, it is difficult to believe that until the 1920s nearly 100 percent of the US population traveled via rail. Conventional passenger-train service spread rapidly by the 1850s, but another form of rail transportation did not emerge until the turn of the 20th century: the interurban. Almost always electric, interurbans linked cities with burghs. Rockford, one of Illinois's three largest urban centers during the 20th century, enjoyed a system appropriately named the Rockford & Interurban, dating from the city's horse-drawn streetcars of the 1880s. By World War I, the Rockford & Interurban ran from downtown Rockford to Cherry Valley and Belvidere; Winnebago, Pecatonica, and Freeport; Roscoe and Rockton; and Beloit and Janesville, Wisconsin. The Rockford & Interurban enjoyed a supernova of success, rising quickly in popularity before slowly dying when the automobile became widespread in the 1920s; the Great Depression finished the job in 1936.

Cover image for Rockford & Interurban Railway, isbn: 9781467112390

Lost Trolleys of Queens and Long Island

9780738545264

$24.99

Before subways and trains, Queens and Long Island were reachable via a large number of electric trolley lines.

An amazing assortment of electric trolley lines once traversed the towns and villages of Queens and Long Island. With names like Jamaica Central, Northport Traction, Ocean Electric, and the Steinway lines, some meandered across meadows and hills while others sped over elevated tracks. There was even one line that had streetcars but no tracks. In the end, all of them helped stitch the countryside into the concentrated suburban area it is today--with barely a trace of the trolleys left anywhere.

Cover image for Lost Trolleys of Queens and Long Island, isbn: 9780738545264

Johnstown Trolleys and Incline

9780738545837

$24.99

The Johnstown flood on May 31, 1889, virtually demolished the horsecar lines of the Johnstown Passenger Railway Company, resulting in the system being rebuilt with electric trolley cars. Johnstown Trolleys and Incline covers the history of the trolley car system, trackless trolleys, and the Johnstown Inclined Plane. Johnstown was the last small city in the United States to operate a variety of vintage and modern trolley cars along with trackless trolleys. The Johnstown incline played a key role in transporting residents to higher ground in the devastating floods of 1936 and 1977. Ridership declined with the coming of the automobile and the changing industrial scene in the region. Rail enthusiasts from all parts of the country came to Johnstown on its last day of trolley service in 1960, and the last runs are fully illustrated in these vintage photographs.

Cover image for Johnstown Trolleys and Incline, isbn: 9780738545837

Black River & Western Railroad

9781467124126

$24.99

The Black River & Western Railroad has provided over 50 continuous years of passenger excursions in rural New Jersey between Flemington and Ringoes, passing through the pristine scenery of Hunterdon County. May 16, 1965, was the first official day of steam-powered passenger excursions, and 50 years later, on May 16, 2015, the same steam locomotive provided power for another steam-powered excursion. During those years, the railroad has grown from the simple excursion attraction of historic railroad equipment, providing the public amusement, to a regional short-line railroad.

Cover for Black River & Western Railroad featuring a steam locomotive in a sepia photograph.

Railroad Wars of New York State

9781609497279

$23.99

New York's railroads were born of the cutthroat conflict of rate wars, bloody strikes and even federal graft. The railroad wars began as soon as the first line was chartered between Albany and Schenectady when supporters of the Erie Canal tried to block the new technology that would render their waterway obsolete. After the first primitive railroads overcame that hurdle, they began battling with one another in a series of rate wars to gain market share. Attracted by the success of the rails, the most powerful and cunning capitalists in the country--Cornelius Vanderbilt, Jay Gould, Daniel Drew and other robber barons--joined the fray. Timothy Starr's account of New York's railroad wars steams through the nineteenth century with stories of rate pools, labor strikes, stock corners, legislative bribery and treasury plundering the likes of which the world had never seen.

Cover image for Railroad Wars of New York State, isbn: 9781609497279

Long Island Rail Road

9781467102537

$24.99

The Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), the oldest railroad in the country still operating under its original name, was chartered in 1834 for the purpose of running trains from the Brooklyn waterfront to the eastern terminal at Greenport. The east end of the LIRR main line consists of a 70-mile stretch of track from Hicksville to Greenport. At one time, there were 29 passenger stations along this east end route, 14 of which are active today. A decommissioned signal tower and obsolete turntable are located on this route. Two stations, Riverhead and Greenport, are locations of the Railroad Museum of Long Island. The 23 miles of track between Hicksville and Ronkonkoma is electrified by third rail current, the electrification having been completed in 1987. Single-track territory since 1844, the line is currently being double-tracked as far east as Ronkonkoma.

Cover image for Long Island Rail Road, isbn: 9781467102537

Rails of California's Central Coast

9780738555911

$24.99

Diversity is the prime characteristic of the California Central Coast's many rail operations. Readers will be attracted by the varying scope of Central Coast--Santa Cruz, Monterey, and San Luis Obispo Counties--rail systems. They range from local horsecar services and the narrow-gauge electrified plant railroad that served the Santa Cruz Cement Company at Davenport to the Southern Pacific Railroad's Coast Line and its engineering marvel Cuesta Grade, highlighted by the world-famous horseshoe curve. Local streetcar systems and long-ceased regional railroads are part of the area's rail legacy. Rare historic images blended with contemporary photography chronicle the region's railways from times past to the present.

Book cover Rails of California's Central Coast featuring a steam locomotive and a desert landscape.

Railways of San Francisco

9780738528878

$24.99

It may be hard to believe now, but San Francisco was once dominated by railways. Before private cars crowded this hemmed-in city, rail was the only way to get around the challenging terrain, and the rail industry rose to the task with many innovative systems. Some of these were herculean, with massive bores through rocky hills, or elaborate cable and counterweight systems to handle steep inclines. Others were simpler, horse-drawn affairs that took passengers from the downtown and waterfront areas to outlying districts. The distinct flavor of San Francisco's neighborhoods owes much to the early rails, as these cars enabled residents to form their own enclaves and still interact with the commercial heart of the city. Some rail systems presaged today's commuter lifestyle-one even ran all the way down Mission Street to far-off San Mateo. Only a few of the many rail systems that once served this city remain.

Railways of San Francisco book cover featuring a sepia waterfront scene with a clock tower and a bold black title panel with red border

Railroads and Depots of Orange County

9780738580111

$24.99

Railroads have been a part of Orange County for over 130 years. The great names of American railroading--Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe; Southern Pacific; and Union Pacific--were firmly planted here by the early 1920s and linked with the largest interurban rail system in the United States, the famed Pacific Electric Railway. Thousands of people passed through Orange County's depots during the 1940s as they came to serve at the many military bases located here during World War II. The names have since changed, and yet the county's rail scene remains as dynamic as ever, with Amtrak, Metrolink, and amusement park railroads joining the Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Union Pacific. Railroad depots, new and old, are located across Orange County and continue on both as vital parts of history and the future of transportation for America's fifth most populated county.

Book cover for Railroads and Depots of Orange County with a train crossing a desert landscape.

San Francisco's Powell Street Cable Cars

9780738530475

$24.99

San Francisco's cable cars are an internationally recognized symbol of the city, but they also have a long and fractious history. There are actually three cable lines in operation today: the California Street line and the two Powell Street lines-- the Powell-Mason and Powell-Hyde. The Powell Street lines have been the subject of much controversy through the years, due to a complex lineage of private and public ownership. Cable cars on Powell Street began in 1888, operating under the Ferries and Cliff House Railway Company and utilizing the same basic design pioneered by Andrew Hallidie in 1873. Among the story's twists and turns are the line's actual routes following the 1906 earthquake, which caused heavy damage and forced major repairs. Post-quake, United Railroads was able to replace many of the cable car lines with streetcars, including a part of the Powell Street system. San Francisco at one time had eight separate cable car operators. Gradually most were replaced by streetcars, buses, and trolley buses, given the complexities and expense of cable systems. The Powell lines were taken over by the city in 1944, but the mayor tried to abandon them in 1947. The public disapproved of this move, and since then the Powell Street line has only grown in stature and its importance to San Francisco.

Images of America San Francisco's Powell Street Cable Cars book cover featuring a historic streetcar and pedestrians.

Los Angeles's Angels Flight

9780738558127

$24.99

From 1901 to 1969, Angels Flight was America's most famous incline railway, familiar from its many appearances on postcards and in pulp fiction and film noir. It inspired the titles of five novels, including a 1999 best seller, and three films. Angels Flight's two colorful trolleys glided up and down the side of Bunker Hill in the heart of Los Angeles, carrying 100 million passengers between a downtown business district and a Victorian aerie that gradually deteriorated into a gritty slum. When the city turned Bunker Hill into an acropolis of skyscrapers, Angels Flight was packed up like a boy's electric train set and stored away for nearly 30 years. After a restoration in the mid-1990s that led to a fatal accident, Angels Flight has reopened and is now ready to claim its next chapters in Los Angeles history.

Book cover for Los Angeles Angels Flight showing a vintage downtown street and the Angels Flight funicular.

Rails Around Fort Worth

9781467131681

$24.99

Railways played a central role in the development of the American West. The railroad came to Fort Worth in 1876, and with it came the boom that transformed a city into a metropolis. From the arrival of the Texas & Pacific Railroad to the streamliners of the postwar era, Fort Worth has always seen the railroad as a vital part of its character. From transcontinental locomotives to the construction of elegant architectural landmarks and to small but convenient interurban passenger lines, railroad history is central to Fort Worth's development. This is the story of a city's love affair with technology, transportation, and industry. Through its connection to an emerging country via the railroad, the young frontier town of Fort Worth came to offer as much to the nation's development as it benefited from it.

Book cover Rails Around Fort Worth with a vintage steam locomotive and a crowd standing on and around it

Louisville & Nashville Railroad in South Central Kentucky

9780738592145

$24.99

At the midpoint of the 19th century, people and goods moved by river or muddy roads, which made traveling difficult; a stagecoach trip from Louisville to Nashville took 36 hours. Railroads were coming into prominence at the time, and the Louisville and Nashville Railroad was chartered in 1850. It was completed between the namesake cities in 1859, overcoming many obstacles such as Muldraugh's Hill, Green River, and Tennessee Ridge. The line became a pawn during the Civil War, used by both Union and Confederate forces, and endured heavy damages to survive and prosper. The Louisville and Nashville Railroad would grow into one of America's great success stories, expanding to nearly 7,000 miles of track throughout the Southeast. This volume covers the L&N Main Line in southern Kentucky and northern Tennessee, the Memphis Line, the Mammoth Cave Railroad, the Glasgow Railway, the Portage Railroad, and a branch to Scottsville.

Sepia cover with a Louisville & Nashville locomotive and a crowd at a Kentucky railroad yard

Kentucky and the Illinois Central Railroad

9780738566610

$24.99

The Illinois Central Railroad (ICRR) operated approximately 600 miles of mainline track throughout the Commonwealth of Kentucky, stretching from the Mississippi River to the central part of the state. In addition to Louisville, the state's largest city, the ICRR also served dozens of small towns. Kentucky's economy was built around coal mining and farming, and the ICRR played a major role in both industries. ICRR's coal trains served as a conveyor for Kentucky coal moving to Midwest factories, and the road hauled a wide variety of agricultural products, including tobacco, grain, and fresh fruit. No mention of the ICRR would be complete without discussing the fleet of fast passenger trains that whisked Kentucky residents to and from distant cities. To maintain the locomotives that hauled all these trains the ICRR operated one of the nation's largest locomotive repair shops in Paducah.

Cover image for Kentucky and the Illinois Central Railroad, isbn: 9780738566610

Chattanooga's Transportation Heritage

9781467110266

$24.99

Chattanooga's 138-year public transportation heritage is a complex and colorful conglomeration of some 32 companies that were initially comprised of horse-drawn streetcar lines. They were later upgraded to electric traction operations, steam dummy lines, and finally to the motor-coach buses of today. Chattanooga's transit story has been unique from its inception. Few cities have had any connection to the incline railways that were constructed in this mountainous city, one of which, the famous Lookout Mountain Incline Railway, is still in daily operation. Today's CARTA transit system has innovated one of the largest fleets of battery-operated electric buses, which other transit companies use as their model for comparison.

Cover image for Chattanooga's Transportation Heritage, isbn: 9781467110266

Tampa Union Station

9781467106351

$24.99

At well over 100 years old, Tampa Union Station is one of the few historic buildings in Tampa that still serves its original purpose. Designed by architect J.F. Leitner of Wilmington, North Carolina, Tampa Union Station has seen millions of travelers pass through its doors since its 1912 opening—from servicemen and women to “flower children” and from families on vacation to college kids setting out on their own. Once threatened with demolition, the train station reopened its doors to the traveling public in 1998 following a multimillion-dollar restoration. Through images from archives and individuals, Tampa Union Station captures moments in time related to this iconic building, including pictures of trains such as Seaboard Air Line’s Silver Meteor and Atlantic Coast Line’s Tampa Special, as well as other fascinating looks at life at the station.

Cover image for Tampa Union Station, isbn: 9781467106351

Oregon & Northwestern Railroad

9781467130479

$24.99

In 1922, the US Forest Service offered one of the largest timber sales in the agency's history, encompassing 890 million board feet of mostly Ponderosa pine timber in the mountains north of Burns, Oregon. Among other requirements, the sale terms required the successful bidder to build and operate 80 miles of common carrier railroad through some of the most remote and undeveloped country in the state. The Fred Herrick Lumber Company and its Malheur Railroad initially won the bidding, only to lose it when a crash in the lumber market forced the company into insolvency. The Edward Hines Lumber Company of Chicago picked up the pieces, and from 1929 until 1984, its subsidiary Oregon & Northwestern Railroad made a living hauling logs, lumber, and occasional livestock between Burns and Seneca, Oregon.

Cover image for Oregon & Northwestern Railroad, isbn: 9781467130479

The Oregonian Railway

9781467130318

$24.99

To those with an interest in railroad history in the United States, mention of the words narrow gauge may bring to mind the extensive three-foot-gauge railroads of Colorado and Utah or perhaps the famous two-foot-gauge lines in Maine. However, few would think first of Oregon and the Pacific Northwest. Nonetheless, between 1877 and 1893, an extensive narrow-gauge railroad developed in Oregon— one that had aspirations of crossing the Cascade Mountains and connecting with the Central Pacific Railroad, thus giving Oregon its first access to the transcontinental railroad system. It is this railroad system, from its inception in 1877 to the present day, that Ed Austin explores herein.

Cover image for The Oregonian Railway, isbn: 9781467130318

Portland's Interurban Railway

9780738596174

$24.99

At the end of the 19th century, Portland led the nation in the development of interurban electric railways. The city became the hub of an electric rail network that spread throughout the Willamette Valley. This is the story of the pioneering local railways that started it all as they built south along the Willamette River to Oregon City and east to Estacada and Bull Run in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. More than 200 historic images illustrate Portland's Interurban Railway from its rudimentary beginnings through the peak years, when passengers rode aboard the finest examples of the car builders' art, to the sudden end in 1958.

Vintage sepia photo of a Portland Interurban Railway streetcar with workers and onlookers along the tracks.

Portland's Streetcar Lines

9780738581262

$24.99

Portland neighborhoods owe their location, alignment, and growth to a splendid, 19th-century innovation: the streetcar. This city still bears the imprint of the carlines that once wove their way out to suburbs in every direction, including Fulton, Portland Heights, Goose Hollow, Nob Hill, Slabtown, Willamette Heights, Albina, Saint Johns, Irvington, Rose City, Mount Tabor, Montavilla, Mount Scott, and Sellwood. As routes developed, people used them for more than just getting to work; they also discovered the recreational function of street railways while visiting friends, parks, and shopping areas farther from the center of town. The time of the trolley peaked during the 1910s. In 1927, the local street railway system entered a period of slow decline that ended in 1950, when Portland's last city streetcars gave way to buses. This is the history of those classic lines.

Cover image for Portland's Streetcar Lines, isbn: 9780738581262

Trolleys Under the Hub

9780738588278

$24.99

Trolleys Under the Hub, a fantastic collection of photographs and captions documenting the history of Boston's Green Line, commemorates the 100th anniversary of America's first subway system. Through a remarkable series of over two hundred unique images, authors Frank Cheney and Anthony M. Sammarco document the development of this active and diverse system over the years. In September of 1897, the first trolley emerged from Park Street under the Boston Common. The transportation system that developed from this early foundation connected Boston with its suburbs, providing a convenient mode of travel for commuters in Roxbury, Charlestown, Dorchester, West Roxbury, and Brighton. Through rare--and in some cases unique--images, authors Cheney and Sammarco develop a portrait of this life-changing and city-building force that will surely delight both trolley buffs and modern-day riders of the MBTA.

Book cover Trolleys Under the Hub showing a crowded early 20th century street with trolley cars.

Boston & Maine in the 20th Century

9780738505473

$24.99

The history of railroads in America is not complete without a pictorial history of the Boston & Maine.

As the twentieth century dawned, the Boston & Maine Railroad Company controlled virtually all of the rail lines in New Hampshire, as well as much of the service in Maine and Massachusetts. Ultimately, the company operated more than 2,000 stations in northern New England. The train was the most important mode of travel, and the stations were the center of the community. Boston & Maine in the 20th Century continues the first pictorial history of the railroad company, entitled Boston & Maine in the 19th Century. With more than 200 rare images and historical narrative, the book details the trains and their destinations: the terminals, stations, depots, and whistle stops to which they sped. Times changed, and the railroad was passed by; however, its legacy lives on.

Cover image for Boston & Maine in the 20th Century, isbn: 9780738505473

Railroads of Rhode Island

9781609493332

$23.99

Dominated by Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island's scenic coast is paralleled by the tracks of some of the oldest and now fastest railroads in the United States. With determination and ingenuity, early civil engineers overcame barriers such as the Great Swamp, which stretches from Kingston to Westerly. The state's key position at the intersection of trade routes and between the major population centers of New England also shaped the placement of its railroads, as well as their dynamic character. Tour the state's historic railways with longtime railfan and railroad historian Frank Heppner. From the Stonington Line to the Boston and Providence Railroad, speed along the pioneer tracks in Rhode Island.

Cover image for Railroads of Rhode Island, isbn: 9781609493332

Railroad Depots of Southern Indiana

9780738539584

$24.99

Did you know that Greene County in Indiana has one of the longest land-crossing railroad trestles in the Midwest?

Are you aware that the Southern Railway once used half of the railroad tunnels in the state? Indiana's first railroad, built in Shelbyville, was only a mile long, but in 1847, completion of a major steam railroad from Madison to Indianapolis made the state's capital a center of transportation. Unlike canals, railroads could be built just about anywhere. Southern Indiana's quickly growing network of rail lines was able to haul tons of goods at low cost, and enabled settlers to travel great distances in a single day. Railroad Depots of Southern Indiana takes the reader on a journey through the towns and cities that shape Indiana's railroad lore. Images depict regional rail history from the inner workings of now demolished depots to one of the oldest "short lines" in Indiana. Through more than 200 vintage photographs, author David E. Longest documents locomotives, rail equipment, the moving of stock, depots, rail stations, and freight houses, and finishes with a tour of the rail museums and excursions that still allow tourists and aficionados to "ride the rails."

Railroad Depots of Southern Indiana book cover showing a vintage steam locomotive beside a depot with workers.

Toledo Railroads

9780738533919

$24.99

The advent of the railroad--a major mode of transportation and an important link to industry--forged the interworkings of a nation, and especially the City of Toledo due to its location on the harbor. In 1850, rail companies began moving in, and Toledo soon became a central connecting point for railroads, bridging the gap between cities like Chicago and Cleveland and Detroit and Cincinnati, making coal available to cities everywhere. Just after the turn of the 20th century, there were 20 different railroads servicing Toledo with four different main stations, providing employment for the town and shaping its commerce and architecture. Today, many of the railroads have been lost to evolution of the city and mergers of the railroad. This book preserves their history through vintage images of trains, rail yards, stations, roundhouses, towers, bridges, and special trains.

Sepia-toned steam locomotive in a rail yard on the cover of Toledo Railroads

Murder & Mayhem on the Texas Rails

9781467151450

$21.99

Texas has a long, romantic history when it comes to railroads. But even though steam engines and streetcars offer nonstop service to Nostalgia City, there's a dark side to Texas rail. The Black Widow of Fort Worth engineered a fatal double-cross at a railroad crossing. The Mountaineer Madman brought death to the Texas Electric Railway, while the Trolley Bandit terrorized the citizens of El Paso. From a freak accident involving a banana peel to a tragic trip to see Santa Claus, Jeff Campbell and the staff of the Interurban Railway Museum cross the Lone Star State on trains derailed by murder and mayhem.

Murder & Mayhem on the Texas Rails cover featuring a wrecked locomotive and railroad workers

Railroading in Conneaut

9780738523460

$24.99

Conneaut, Ohio, a major Lake Erie harbor town, fortified the industrial and economic growth of the Great Lakes area during the "Golden Age" of railroading. Three major railroads, the Nickel Plate Road, the New York Central, and the Bessemer & Lake Erie hauled people, iron ore, and coal in and out of Conneaut. Written in cooperation with the Conneaut Historical Railroad Museum and the Conneaut Area Historical Society, this book preserves Conneaut's rich rail and shipping history in vintage photographs. The town itself is beautifully captured in images of lighthouses, buildings, festivals, and people.

Book cover featuring a vintage steam locomotive along the tracks with the title Railroading in Conneaut Ohio by David Borsvold.

Safe Houses and the Underground Railroad in East Central Ohio

9781596292468

$21.99

For slaves fleeing captivity, the Underground Railroad was the most viable means of escape, and with over three thousand miles of clandestine routes and secret trails, Ohio had the country's most extensive network of safe houses. A great number of these passageways were concentrated throughout the state's east central region, particularly the inland channels of Coshocton, Holmes and Guernsey Counties and the now-famous canal route, a major conduit winding through Tuscarawas and Stark Counties. Similarly, runaways sought refuge in the hills and valleys of Harrison County, as well as in the Quaker stronghold of Columbiana County. Using the letters of Wilbur H. Seibert, along with contemporary photographs of area safe houses, Janice VanHorne-Lane provides an intimate account of east central Ohio's profound contributions to the Underground Railroad and its mission, freedom for all.

Cover image for Safe Houses and the Underground Railroad in East Central Ohio, isbn: 9781596292468

Cincinnati on the Go

9780738533377

$24.99

Cincinnati on the Go explores the various modes of transportation that helped people get around in the first half of the 20th century, providing a unique view of the Queen City through the eyes of her everyday commuters. This volume features historic images of river transportation, street railways, city buses, steam railroads, the first automobiles, and wonderful, rare street scenes. Author Allen J. Singer expands on the transportation photographs in the previously released The Cincinnati Subway, inviting the reader up and out of the abandoned subway tunnels and on a visual tour through the historic streets of the Queen City on her riverboats, streetcars, cable cars, railroads, interurbans, and buses.

Cover image for Cincinnati on the Go, isbn: 9780738533377

Mattoon and Charleston Area Railroads

9780738552286

$24.99

Railroads were instrumental to the development of Mattoon and Charleston, twin cities located in Coles County in east-central Illinois. The railroads enabled both cities to become regional centers for agriculture, industry, and commerce. The Illinois Central Railroad and New York Central System maintained shops, yards, and offices in Mattoon, while the Nickel Plate Road had shops, offices, and a yard in Charleston. In the early 20th century, the railroads were the major source of employment in both cities. Dozens of passenger trains stopped at the local stations. The phasing out of steam locomotives following World War II led to the closing of the shops. Railroad consolidation that began in the 1960s would lead to abandonment of routes and greatly diminish the importance of the railroads to the economies of Mattoon and Charleston.

Book cover for Mattoon and Charleston Area Railroads featuring a vintage train car and crowd

The New York, Ontario and Western Railway

9780738562629

$24.99

The New York, Ontario and Western Railway was the first class-one railroad in the United States to be abandoned in its entirety. Whereas other rail lines were closed gradually, the federal government closed down the railroad on March 29, 1957, for its failure to pay employee withholding taxes. The railroad went into bankruptcy in 1937 after its main shipping commodity, coal, was rapidly replaced by oil for home heat. As time passed, the interest in this abandoned railroad grew, and much of the company's records have been recovered and preserved. Today, with 750 members, the Ontario and Western Railway Historical Society Archives Center houses this unique corporate record collection. In addition, there are extensive private collections of everything from locomotives, passenger cars, lanterns, and tools to company passes and railroad police memorabilia.

Postcard History Series cover for The New York Ontario and Western Railway with a vintage steam locomotive at a small-town station.

Railroads of Rensselaer

9780738565040

$24.99

Rensselaer was once a classic American railroad town, and like most cities and towns of its type, it was part of an important junction of several destinations. From the 1840s to today, trains have rolled to the four principal compass points from town. Located across the Hudson River from Albany, Rensselaer has seen a rich array of locomotives, structures, and notable trains, all helping to establish Rensselaer's rail prominence and the industry's importance to and involvement in the community. Today Rensselaer hosts the Albany Amtrak station, which sees an average of 775,000 passengers annually and is ranked as the country's 10th busiest station. Using images of rolling stock, buildings, maps, documents, and memorabilia, Railroads of Rensselaer is a visual trip through the years.

Cover image for Railroads of Rensselaer, isbn: 9780738565040

Long Island Rail Road

9781467128544

$24.99

The Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) is the oldest railroad in the country still operating under its original name. The Oyster Bay Branch is one of the smaller branches but is probably the most historically significant one. There are 12 stations along the 14.3 miles of track (one station is closed but the building still stands). Of the 13 still existing LIRR stations built in the 1800s, six are on the Oyster Bay Branch. The branch is partly electrified, and two signal towers exist, one operating and one abandoned. At the terminal, Oyster Bay Station is the home train station of the 26th president of the United States—Theodore Roosevelt. The Oyster Bay Railroad Museum is currently restoring the train station, as well as the historic turntable and steam locomotive No. 35.

Cover image for Long Island Rail Road, isbn: 9781467128544

The Fonda, Johnstown & Gloversville Railroad

9780738556697

$24.99

Return to the fondly remembered glory days of an upstate New York railroad in The Fonda, Johnstown, & Gloversville Railroad: Sacandaga Route to the Adirondacks.

The innovative Fonda, Johnstown, & Gloversville Railroad, a source of great interest for railroad enthusiasts, served its communities for over 100 years, using the finest and newest equipment available. Here is the chance to view it like never before, through the eyes of early photographers in many previously unpublished images.

Included in this collection are the communities through which the railroad traveled along its 130 miles of operation, captured in images from the 1870s to the 1980s. Thanks to early historians with the foresight to preserve such records, we are able to return to the heyday of the railroad, when the FJ&G stopped at splendid Victorian stations and boasted some of the most advanced equipment in the country. The railroad used an extensive steam division as well as an electric division and frequently traveled to the beautiful Sacandaga Park near Northville, New York. A popular destination for thousands of tourists to the southern Adirondacks in the late 1800s, the park is one of the many FJ&G stops included in this impressive collection of images.

Author Randy L. Decker brings his lifelong love of railroads to this unique historical work, as well as his memories of growing up in Gloversville during the 1960s. He has spent many years traveling throughout the communities along the route, collecting vintage images and countless stories from the people who worked on the railroad and the passengers who relied on it for transportation. Discover a true historical gem, a reminder of our nation's past, and a source of pride for the people of upstate New York in this valuable addition to the Images of America series.

Cover of The Fonda Johnstown & Gloversville Railroad showing a historic steam locomotive and three men

Long Island Rail Road

9781467120135

$24.99

The Long Island Rail Road is the oldest railroad in the country still operating under its original name. As the busiest railroad in North America, it carries 265,000 customers each weekday aboard 735 trains on 11 different branches. The Port Jefferson Branch serves 10 stations from Hicksville to Port Jefferson and carries nearly 20 percent of the railroad's passenger traffic over its 32 miles of track. Hicksville Station is the site of the October 8, 1955, End of Steam Ceremony, when steam locomotives were retired from service. The oldest surviving station building constructed by the Long Island Rail Road is on this branch at St. James. Between 1895 and 1938, the branch extended 10 miles east to Wading River. The branch was not electrified until 1970 and that was only to Huntington Station, east of which is served by diesel and dual-mode locomotives.

Cover image for Long Island Rail Road, isbn: 9781467120135

Railroad Depots of Northern Indiana

9780738541310

$24.99

Take a historic excursion across a state that is often mistaken as the home of grain and corn production, and little more.

Countless manufacturing centers in northern Indiana strengthened the economic fabric of Hoosier land. The railroads that criss-crossed northern Indiana were instrumental in populating the small towns and larger cities by employing thousands over the course of many years. Through photographs of depots, freight houses, and other railroad structures, long demolished yet an integral part of community development, Railroad Depots of Northern Indiana reviews the history of the cities and towns that used the rail to transport raw materials and finished manufactured products across the state to markets such as Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, and Cincinnati. This book also tells the story of a short line railroad and the commodities it has transported for the past century, as well as the longest-existing interurban, still operating just south of Lake Michigan, the resilient South Shore Line.

Book cover Railroad Depots of Northern Indiana with a historic photograph of a crowded train station.

Greater Wyoming Valley Trolleys

9780738565873

$24.99

The Wyoming Valley is nestled among the Endless Mountains in Luzerne County with the scenic Susquehanna River meandering through it. Best known for its rich deposits of anthracite coal, the Wyoming Valley was first colonized by Connecticut settlers in 1769. Electric trolleys served many urban centers in Pennsylvania. Trolley service in the Wyoming Valley started in 1888 and lasted for more than 60 years. Trolley lines went through the boroughs and townships of Ashley, Courtdale, Edwardsville, Forty Fort, Hanover, Kingston, Larksville, Miners Mills, Nanticoke, Parsons, Pittston, Plains, Plymouth, Sugar Notch, West Pittston, West Wyoming, Wilkes-Barre, and Wyoming. Greater Wyoming Valley Trolleys features rare photographs dating from the 1890s to 1950 documenting the trolley system and the communities of the Wyoming Valley.

Cover image for Greater Wyoming Valley Trolleys, isbn: 9780738565873

The Ligonier Valley Rail Road

9781467120814

$24.99

To provide his sons with an opportunity to create a new business, Judge Thomas Mellon agreed in August 1877 to invest in a short line railroad that would connect Ligonier to the Pennsylvania Railroad in Latrobe. Four months later, the Ligonier Valley Rail Road (LVRR), a 10.6-mile-long line, was completed and began transporting passengers and freight between Ligonier and Latrobe. The viable transportation the LVRR provided to Pittsburgh markets immediately spurred lumber and quarry industries in Ligonier Valley and later coal mining and coke production. Also, to increase ridership, Judge Mellon built Idlewild Park on 350 acres near Ligonier in 1878. By its end in 1952, the LVRR had hauled more than 30 million tons of freight out of the valley. Equally impressive, because of the popularity of Idlewild Park and the growing tourism in Ligonier Valley, nine million passengers rode LVRR's rails over its 75 years of operation. Mellon's short line railroad stimulated an economic boom in Ligonier Valley and propelled it into the 20th century.

Cover of The Ligonier Valley Rail Road showing a vintage steam locomotive and spectators.

Manhattan's Lost Streetcars

9780738538846

$24.99

By the first quarter of the 20th century, Manhattan had well over 400 miles of streetcar trackage, an investment of several million dollars. Less than 50 years later, the rail system had completely vanished. Manhattan's Lost Streetcars chronicles the finance, political pressures, and advancing technology behind Gotham's streetcar networks from 1890 to 1935. The story ends with the dismantling of the system. Manhattan's Lost Streetcars recalls a bygone era when public rail transportation was aboveground and New Yorkers rode the Metropolitan Street Railway, the Green Lines, the Manhattan Bridge Three Cent Line, and the Brooklyn & North River line, among others. It features images of the independent rail companies and the individual lines that made up a vast public transportation network in Manhattan.

Cover image for Manhattan's Lost Streetcars, isbn: 9780738538846

The Rahway Valley Railroad

9780738510088

$24.99

Many residents of Union and Essex Counties in New Jersey fondly recall the whistles of the Rahway Valley Railroad trains that rolled through the picturesque stations of Roselle Park, Kenilworth, Union, Springfield, and Summit. The Rahway's steam and diesel locomotives supported local commerce, provided passenger service, and carried a vast array of goods to and from local businesses. It connected the area with larger railroads, such as the Central Railroad of New Jersey, the Lehigh Valley, and the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western. One of the shortest yet most prosperous of American railroads, the Rahway Valley helped transform a rural region into one of New Jersey's most vital and populous areas. The Rahway Valley Railroad presents the story of this colorful short line with rare, vintage photographs of locomotives, passengers, stations, and train crews. It recounts how the Rahway Valley evolved from the New York and New Orange Railroad, linking Union County towns with Newark Heights (Maplewood), in adjoining Essex County. Images in this book include passengers riding Rahway Valley trains to picnics, church outings, and Springfield's world-famous Baltusrol Golf Club. Readers will learn how this feisty little line competed successfully for many years against the trucking industry and the interstate highway system during a time when many small railroads were dying out. The Rahway Valley Railroad tells the distinctively American story of a proud short line that competed with forces larger than itself and faithfully served the local merchants and residents who now remember it so fondly.

Book cover showing a sepia photo of Rahway Valley Railroad workers in front of a locomotive.

Crossing Nebraska

9781467171243

$24.99

Journey the historic path from wagon ruts to blacktop highways across Nebraska.

For centuries, Nebraska’s Platte River Valley has served as a natural passageway for the nation’s travelers. The Oregon, California, and Mormon Trails guided intrepid settlers west. Soon, the Pony Express, roughly following those trails, provided the first direct mail service connecting the West Coast with east of the Mississippi River. These historic routes later evolved into the transcontinental railroad, the Lincoln Highway, and eventually modern-day Interstate 80. History buffs, road-trippers, and the generally curious alike can navigate the tracks that each era of travel left locally and nationally.

Blending vivid historical detail with memorable personal narratives, author Andrea M. Riley offers an enlightening journey through one of the country’s most important transportation corridors.

Cover image for Crossing Nebraska, isbn: 9781467171243

Union Station in Denver

9781626199644

$21.99

On June 1, 1881, Denver's Union Station opened as the largest structure west of the Mississippi. The station welcomed people from all walks of life, from pioneers and miners to U.S. presidents and Buffalo Bill Cody—and even royalty from abroad. It served as the center point for transporting cargo to Denver before the rise in popularity of air travel. Due to revitalization efforts, Union Station is the centerpiece of the nation's largest transportation hub and the pride of the city. Author Rhonda Beck explores the history and stories behind one of the Mile High City's most iconic historic landmarks.

Cover image for Union Station in Denver, isbn: 9781626199644

Northwestern Pacific Railroad

9781467130622

$24.99

The year 2014 marks the centennial of the completion of the Northwestern Pacific Railroad (NWP), celebrated by driving a golden spike at Cain Rock in October 1914. This achievement was the culmination of a massive, six-year engineering effort to connect rail lines ending at Willits with the early lumber company railroads of the Humboldt Bay region. When it was completed, the NWP linked Eureka with San Francisco by rail, a milestone in the history of Humboldt and Northern Mendocino Counties. This book examines the impact of the NWP on Northwestern California. Although no longer operational, the railroad today symbolizes the ongoing struggle to connect this isolated region with the wider world.

Cover image for Northwestern Pacific Railroad, isbn: 9781467130622

Street Railways of El Paso

9780738571140

$24.99

Spanish explorers traveling north from Mexico in 1581 crossed the Rio Grande at present-day El Paso and called the area El Paso Del Norte, or the pass of the north. Two cities were linked together: Ciudad Juarez and El Paso. In 1881, the railroad brought even more people to El Paso. What had been a sleepy adobe town became a vibrant, bustling city. Public transportation was established with a mule-car system in 1882 and ran for 20 years. The first electric cars were introduced in 1902 and were also very successful, serving all parts of the city and establishing neighborhoods. At the zenith of the system, there were 63 miles of track, 17 routes, and over 100 streetcars. In those days, everyone used the electric cars.

Cover image for Street Railways of El Paso, isbn: 9780738571140

The Port of Houston

9781467130769

$24.99

To reach the Port of Houston's Turning Basin, a ship must travel 50 miles along a narrow and twisting channel that passes through Galveston Bay, the San Jacinto River, and Buffalo Bayou. Despite this improbable location, Houston has the world's largest landlocked port. Measured by annual tonnage shipped, the Port of Houston is the second-largest port in the United States. Its docks, wharves, and facilities cover more than 25 miles. The port starts its second century as a seaport in 2014. Its transformation from a crowded river port into an industrial giant is fascinating. It is a tale of technology, geography, politics, hard work, and Texas brag—mixed with a little luck.

Cover image for The Port of Houston, isbn: 9781467130769

Railroad Depots of Central Florida

9780738553900

$24.99

Railroads have served the northern counties of Central Florida since before the Civil War. Following the war, railroads expanded down the peninsula to bring transportation services to even more people and places throughout the region. By 1929, the railroad network in the state had reached its peak, with some communities being served by two or more railroad lines. Trains provided the means for growth and development, and the local depot was the focal point of every town throughout Florida's central region. Stretching across the middle section of the peninsula from coast to coast, the Central Florida area includes Levy, Gilchrist, Alachua, Putnam, and Volusia Counties to the north, while the counties of Sarasota, Desoto, Highland, Osceola, and Brevard define the southern boundary. Featuring depots of the Atlantic Coast Line, Seaboard Air Line, Florida East Coast, and their predecessor railroads, the photographs used by the author were obtained from local historical groups, the Florida State Archives, and private collections.

Railroad Depots of Central Florida cover showing a vintage train at a station with a platform

Washington & Old Dominion Railroad Revisited

9781467116381

$24.99

Explore the geography of Rosslyn, Great Falls, Leesburg and Purcelville along the Washington & Old Dominion Railroad.

Washington & Old Dominion Railroad covered the railroad's corporate history, construction, and operation. The images within offer a look at the railroad's feed and grain business, railfan-type views of equipment and a visual record of methods used to maintain the right-of-way and place equipment back on the tracks. Additionally, this work offers a history of the conversion of the right-of-way into thevery popular Washington & Old Dominion Railroad Regional Park.

Learn about the history of mills and their place in the local economy. See how the Burro crane was a jack of all trades. Look under the hood and inside the cab to imagine what it was like to be an engineer on one of the railroad's Baldwin-Westinghouse electric freight locomotives.

Cover image for Washington & Old Dominion Railroad Revisited, isbn: 9781467116381

Yakima Valley Transportation Company

9780738581033

$24.99

The National Register of Historic Places lists the Yakima Valley Transportation Company (YVT) as the last intact early 20th century electric interurban railroad in America. From its beginning in 1907, the YVT was no quitter, surviving a takeover by the Union Pacific, large financial losses as the last trolley railroad in Washington state, attempts at dieselization, and a concerted effort to put the company in its grave. Thanks to the efforts of local preservationists, YVT trolleys are still in operation. The railroad and its infrastructure never changed. What is seen today is what was built 100 years ago—a living slice of history. Images of Rail: Yakima Valley Transportation Company is the most authoritative chronicle of the famous YVT yet compiled.

Cover image for Yakima Valley Transportation Company, isbn: 9780738581033

Boston Harbor

9780738544816

$24.99

Postcard publishers had plenty to work with in the Boston area at the
beginning of the 20th century, the heyday of the American postcard. The Boston Harbor Islands offered romantic scenery with their stunning natural features, historic lighthouses, and majestic coastal artillery forts. Picturesque summer destinations like Hull and Revere offered everything from sandy beaches to raucous amusement parks to grand hotels. Even the working waterfront in Boston, Quincy's Fore River Shipyard, and quiet Hingham Harbor provided excellent postcard imagery, scenes to be sent home with a "wish you were here" message on the back.

Cream postcard history cover with a vintage harbor scene and a sailing ship for Boston Harbor

The Milwaukee Connection

9781467128803

$24.99

In the late 1890s, the Union Pacific, Northern Pacific, and Great Northern Railways had a firm grip on all West Coast rail traffic. In 1905, Milwaukee Road officials voted to extend the line into Seattle, securing Pacific Coast markets. As the Milwaukee built into Montana, numerous obstacles emerged; frigid winter temperatures and steep mountain grades challenged steam-powered operations. In the early 1910s, electric locomotives became a viable alternative for steam engines in long-haul rail service; at the same time, waterpower for generating electricity was developing in the Northwest. The mines and smelters of Butte and Anaconda supplied the resources needed to electrify 440 miles of track in Montana and Idaho. The longevity of the Milwaukee Road electrification into the 1970s highlights the determination of faithful employees on what was known as America's Resourceful Railroad.

Book cover showing a line of Milwaukee Road diesel locomotives on tracks with utility poles in the background.

Nebraska's Cowboy Rail Line

9780738560328

$24.99

Nebraska's Cowboy Line existed for nearly 125 years and covered more than 400 miles as it made its way across the northern portion of the state. The construction of the rail line, which started in 1869, was the impetus for the establishment of many towns, and even the relocation of some, along the route. The line was employed to transport miners to the Black Hills during the gold rush of the late 1800s, it carried thousands of Irish and German immigrants to the largely unsettled area, and it allowed politicians to meet their constituents. It also was used to deliver necessities, amusements, technology, and new innovations to the state's citizenry.

Vintage book cover with four men in period clothing standing on railroad tracks

Winfield

9781467127288

$24.99

Winfield's history traces back to the mid-19th century, well before its official incorporation in 1921. It began as the Gary's Mill settlement and nearly became Fredericksburg and Frederick Park due to the German heritage that its early people brought with them. It became Winfield when it was believed that Gen. Winfield Scott passed through the area during the Black Hawk War of the early 1830s. Winfield's history is attributed to people, businesses, and social activities. Its people included unique individuals such as Jacob Mueller and John Hamm, as well as the Higgins, Enders, and Besch families. Its businesses included longtime staples Higgins Store and Schmidt's Meat Market, as well as popular gathering locales like Hamm's tavern. Early social activities usually centered at Forester's Hall. Many residents attended mass at St. John the Baptist Church, which started in 1867, burned in 1906, and was rebuilt and rededicated one year later. While Central DuPage Hospital is a staple of today's Winfield, early Winfield had the Forsythe Rest Farm and the Chicago-Winfield Tuberculosis Sanitarium.

Cover image for Winfield, isbn: 9781467127288

Cincinnati's Incomplete Subway

9781596298958

$23.99

Local author Jacob R. Mecklenborg reveals a fresh, thought-provoking, full examination of the Cincinnati subway's demise and what its future might hold.

What of those ghostly catacombs that lie dormant below city streets? Those subway tunnels, never finished, never filled with the screeches of trains and the busy commotion of commuters. Just there. Dead. You've heard of the subway's demise. The tunnels were too narrow. The city was too broke. A grand miscalculation. Well, most of what you've heard is, sorry to say, untrue. The popular story of the subway's demise is myth-laden and as incomplete as the original plan. The full story, long buried in mounds of public records dispersed in libraries, is now exposed.

Cover image for Cincinnati's Incomplete Subway, isbn: 9781596298958

Suburban Philadelphia Trolleys

9780738550435

$24.99

The Philadelphia Suburban Transportation Company prospered through the hard times of the 1930s and was the last privately-owned trolley system in the United States. Aerodynamically designed Bullet cars of the Philadelphia and Western Railway dramatically reduced travel time on the Sixty-ninth Street to
Norristown line. The Presidents' Conference Committee trolley cars of the Philadelphia Transportation Company linked the boroughs of Darby, Colwyn, and Yeadon with Philadelphia. Photographs of Media's 1977 town fair feature vintage trolleys in the only suburban community in the United States with a trolley line ending in its main street. Suburban Philadelphia Trolleys covers the history of the trolleys that served Philadelphia's western suburbs.

Cover image for Suburban Philadelphia Trolleys, isbn: 9780738550435

Metropolitan New York's Third Avenue Railway System

9780738538105

$24.99

Metropolitan New York's Third Avenue Railway System features never-before-published photographs documenting the final years of this streetcar system, from 1940 to 1957. Chartered as the Third Avenue Railroad Company in 1853, the system provided streetcar service on Third Avenue from Ann Street to 61st Street. The line eventually extended north to Harlem and across 125th Street and, in its heyday, north of Manhattan into the Bronx and northern Westchester County. Individual lines, such as the Yonkers Railroad, the Westchester Electric Railroad, the Queensborough Bridge Railway Company, and the Union Railway, are featured in this book. Metropolitan New York's Third Avenue Railway System recalls the bygone street scenes of Manhattan, as well as some of the carbarns and work cars and the car-scrapping yard employed by the system.

Metropolitan New York's Third Avenue Railway System cover featuring a vintage streetcar on a busy city street

Arcade and Attica Railroad

9780738572055

$24.99

In 1881, a narrow-gauge railroad was built in southwestern New York, from Attica to Arcade. It was later rebuilt to standard gauge to connect with what became the Pennsylvania Railroad. Concerned that the line would be abandoned, local farmers, merchants, and others raised money to purchase the railroad and formed the Arcade and Attica Railroad. Through vintage photographs, Arcade and Attica Railroad highlights the history of a railroad that, faced with declining revenues, launched steam-powered passenger service in 1962. With a dedicated management team that has taken the time and effort to face obstacles, the pride of loyal employees, and a supportive community, the railroad has endured a variety of herculean challenges to continue passenger and freight service in Wyoming County, New York.

Cover image for Arcade and Attica Railroad, isbn: 9780738572055

Brooklyn Streetcars

9780738557618

$24.99

In the summer of 1854, the Brooklyn City Railroad opened four separate streetcar lines. The lines were introduced here several years before they were brought to larger cities, such as Baltimore, Boston, and Philadelphia, demonstrating the city's modernization and ingenuity. From its first introduction, Brooklyn had one of the nation's largest urban transit systems. With the advent of streetcars, the population in Brooklyn grew from about 139,000 to over 2.5 million by the time streetcars were retired. The street railway blended mobility with innovation, prompting one-third of New York City's population to call Brooklyn home.

Book cover Brooklyn Streetcars showing a vintage streetcar on tracks with Branford Electric Railway Association label

Plymouth Railroads

9781467104692

$24.99

According to a Detroit Free Press article of March 14, 1872, “The advent of the railroad has completely changed the course of life of the inhabitants of this village, which is the first of importance going west from Detroit.” The two railroads that came to Plymouth in the early 1870s changed the course of history for the once-sleepy town. Within 20 years, the railroads would be used to transport repeat orders for the booming air rifle industry to all corners of the United States. The rail lines made industry possible for a small burg outside of the metropolitan area of Detroit. Because of the distance to other cities, passenger transportation was always an important mission of railroads. These needs were met between 1899 and 1928 by the Detroit, Plymouth & Northville Railroad (Interurban). Later, enhanced passenger service ran on the Chesapeake & Ohio (C&O) line between Detroit and Grand Rapids, stopping in Plymouth (1946–1971).

Cover image for Plymouth Railroads, isbn: 9781467104692

San Francisco's California Street Cable Cars

9780738559636

$24.99

San Francisco's internationally recognized cable cars are the symbol of the individual character of a great city. The California Street cable car line is one of only three remaining lines in the city. The California Street Railway, or Cal Cable, was developed and opened by Leland Stanford, one of the builders of the transcontinental railroad and later founder of Stanford University. Indeed, the iconic line, intimately connected with some of the West's pioneer businessmen, was sold, expanded, and reached its peak mileage just after 1890, only to be destroyed in the great earthquake and fire of 1906. As resilient as the city it served, Cal Cable was rebuilt and lasted as an independent business longer than any other private San Francisco transit operation. Cut down to its present form in 1954, that remnant and its double-ended cars survive as an integral part of today's cable car system.

Sepia book cover showing a San Francisco cable car on a downtown street with tall buildings.

Sacramento's Streetcars

9780738531472

$24.99

Until 1947, Sacramento's streetcars linked a bustling downtown district with residential neighborhoods, workplaces, and a growing series of suburbs. Starting with horse-drawn cars on Front Street, the streetcar system owned by the Pacific Gas and Electric Company expanded to include Midtown, Curtis Park, Land Park, Oak Park, and East Sacramento. But PG&E was not alone; two other companies ran streetcar routes downtown, along with suburban lines to West Sacramento, North Sacramento, Rio Linda, Elverta, Colonial Heights, and Colonial Acres. Sacramentans rode the cars to work, to school, to the state fair, and just about anywhere they wanted to go until the streetcars were replaced by buses owned by National City Lines.

Cover image for Sacramento's Streetcars, isbn: 9780738531472

California’s Capitol Corridor

9781467124171

$24.99

The "Capitol Corridor" is the name of the Amtrak passenger train route between California's capital, Sacramento, and San Jose, the state's first capital upon admission to the Union in 1850. The scenery between these two areas highlights vastly different land uses; examples include an industrialized shoreline covered with a forest of petroleum refineries, urban areas transitioning from industrial to residential use, and a wildlife refuge disturbed only by the passage of trains. The Capitol Corridor is now an integral part of the transportation scene in Northern California. Since 1991, its equipment and infrastructure have evolved to keep pace with technology as well as the area's dynamic economic and social environment.

Cover of California’s Capitol Corridor showing an Amtrak locomotive and a banner that reads San Jose welcomes Amtrak Capitols.

Rails around Houston

9780738558844

$24.99

Several railroads were chartered by the Republic of Texas, but the first line built was the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos and Colorado, which began construction near the Port of Houston Turning Basin in 1851. The BBB&C would become the oldest segment of the country's first transcontinental railroad under sole ownership: the Southern Pacific's Sunset Route, connecting New Orleans and Los Angeles and completed in 1883. By the time oil was discovered near Beaumont in 1901, Houston was such a transportation hub that it became the heart of the petrochemical industry. Houston saw narrow-gauge lines, two interurban lines, light rail, and even a monorail. For many years, the chamber of commerce proudly proclaimed that Houston was the place "where seventeen railroads meet the sea." More than 30 beautiful trains with names like Sunset Limited, Sunbeam, Sam Houston Zephyr, Twin Star Rocket, Bluebonnet, Texas Rocket, and Texas Chief would serve three depots.

Vintage book cover with a steam locomotive in a freight yard, Rails around Houston

Harvey Houses of Texas

9781626195240

$21.99

On the eve of the twentieth century, small-town Texas was still wild country lacking in the commodities and cultural centers of larger cities. This changed, however, with the arrival of the Santa Fe rail line, followed quickly by the Harvey House. Established in Kansas by English immigrant Fred Harvey, Harvey Houses could be found throughout the Southwest and adjoined local depots in sixteen Texas towns. Found in every corner of the state, Harvey Houses were not just restaurants and hotels for weary, hungry travelers but were also bustling social centers and often the only commercial outlet for the communities that developed around them. Author Rosa Walston Latimer tells the history of hospitality the Fred Harvey way in turn-of-the-century Texas, woven from personal stories of the famous Harvey Girls and other employees of Texas Harvey Houses.

Cover image for Harvey Houses of Texas, isbn: 9781626195240

The Virginia Blue Ridge Railroad

9781467118934

$21.99

In 1849, Virginia began a bold railroad expansion toward the Ohio River and its lucrative trade connections. The project's plan covered 423 miles and called for piercing two mountain chains with three railroads. The Blue Ridge Railroad was the shortest of these but crossed the most mountainous terrain. At times, hired slaves, who prepared the tracks, and Irish immigrants, who blasted the tunnels, faced challenges that seemed almost insurmountable. Many were killed by explosions and falling rock. Those deaths often resulted in labor strikes. The unrest slowed progress and haunted chief engineer Claudius Crozet for seven years. In this first full-length history of the Blue Ridge Railroad, award-winning author Mary E. Lyons uses a wealth of historical documents to describe construction on what Crozet called dangerous ground.

Cover image for The Virginia Blue Ridge Railroad, isbn: 9781467118934

Chattahoochee Valley Railway

9780738502991

$24.99

Track the history of Chattahoochee Valley Railway through five generations of service using vintage images.

Weaving across state lines from Standing Rock, Alabama, through West Point, Georgia, and back to Bleecker, Alabama, the Chattahoochee Valley Railway served many communities along its line. Its last run was in 1992, but now the days of the short line railroad are revisited in Chattahoochee Valley Railway. Although some books on the history of the region render a passing mention of this railway, none have included over 200 images and a detailed historical account like Chattahoochee Valley Railway. The railroad served surrounding communities for over five generations by offering transportation, and the rail line's parent textile corporation built schools, churches, recreational areas, and a water supply for those communities. By the 1980s, modernization of the corporate structure eliminated the need for the railway and its equipment was sold off. However, part of its track bed is now a biking, hiking, and walking trail. The old railway is still serving nearby residents and is still enjoyed by all who follow its path.

Cover of Images of America Chattahoochee Valley Railway showing women on a train platform.

Virginia Rail Trails

9781626196537

$23.99

Take a tour of Virginia's scenic rail trails with author Joe Tennis as he explores restored train stations, discovers a railroad's lost island graveyard and crosses the commonwealth on its idyllic paths.

These classic rail lines of Virgina that were once only accessible to train engineers or a few lucky passengers can now be enjoyed by anyone looking for a scenic hike or bike ride. The trails highlight the natural beauty of Old Dominion, from the sunrise side of the Eastern Shore to the setting sun at the Cumberland gap, and each trail, with names like the Virginia Creeper and the Dick & Willie, has a personality and grandeur all its own.

Cover image for Virginia Rail Trails, isbn: 9781626196537

Johnson City

9781467129664

$24.99

Johnson City's growth was transformed through development of transportation in East Tennessee. Trails first blazed by migrating buffalo and Native Americans evolved into trails for stagecoaches, tracks for rail lines, and paved roads for automobiles. Henry Johnson realized the potential for the area and took a risk in 1854 when he bought a parcel from Abraham Jobe at the junction of the proposed East Tennessee & Virginia Railroad and the stage road to build a home, store, and depot. The community that arose around this complex was known by many names in its early days, including Blue Plum, Haynesville, and Johnson's Depot. However, on December 1, 1869, Johnson City received its first charter of incorporation from the State of Tennessee. As Johnson City approaches the 2019 sesquicentennial of the city's incorporation, this collection of postcards provides a look back at the people, places, and scenery around Johnson City.

Cover image for Johnson City, isbn: 9781467129664

Big Bend Railroads

9781467132534

$24.99

The Big Bend area had its start with a land grant given by President Lincoln to the Northern Pacific Railway. As such, the railway company heavily promoted the area to encourage settlement and populate the station sites along the way. Towns began to develop in the late 1880s; prior to that time, the few settlers had a difficult time getting around. Despite snow, floods, fires, wrecks, human error, sabotage, and government regulation, the railroads continued and were able to serve the communities and help them survive. The earliest lines were built largely by man and beast with few large machines. The last transcontinental line in the Big Bend, the Milwaukee Road, featured groundbreaking technology in the form of electrically operated locomotives. The building of Grand Coulee Dam brought more railroad lines, with tracks that featured grades and locomotives normally seen on logging railroads, to bring in construction materials to the largest concrete structure in the world at the time.

Gray placeholder cover reading Cover Coming Soon for Big Bend Railroads.

Manchester Streetcars

9780738504124

$24.99

There was a time when streetcars were a vital part of daily life in Manchester. From 1877 until 1940, horsecars and trolleys glided up and down the principal streets of the Queen City. Today, only a few of Manchester's residents remember those days. Now, you can enjoy a ride with them in Manchester Streetcars, an unforgettable journey over the rails of long ago. By 1892, Manchester had a fine, extensive horsecar system, which was electrified three years later. Expansion began in 1896 and through 1907, the network of tracks grew steadily, with new lines not only serving the Queen City but also radiating to Goffstown, Concord, Nashua, and Derry. More than one hundred closed and open cars provided vital local transportation during the peak years of the trolley era. These pages intimately describe the railway companies and the cars that made street travel in New Hampshire's largest city and vicinity so pleasant and so memorable for six decades.