Conrail (Railroad Color History) [Hardcover]

Tim Doherty (Author)

Book Description

Series: Railroad Color History | Publication Date: March 13, 2004

During its 25-year history, Conrail became one of the most familiar modern railroads, a freight line that connected most of the Northeast's population centers and was renowned for its clean locomotives, tight schedules, and frequent heavy freight trains. This comprehensive and gorgeously illustrated history examines Conrail's motive power and rolling stock, its yards and terminals, and its most interesting routes, as well as its operations. Much of the information is gleaned from interviews with former Conrail employees. The photography is sourced from a variety of collections and archivists around the country.Following a brief look at the Pennsylvania, New Haven, New York Central, Lehigh Valley, Erie-Lackawanna, and other roads that ultimately formed Conrail, the book launches into chapters detailing the major aspects of Conrail operations, including: 1. The Boston Line, the world's oldest mountain railroad which was home to scenic splendor and 5,000-horsepower Electro-Motive SD80MAC locomotives; 2. The Water Level Route, the former New York-to-Chicago path of the New York Central's 20th Century Limited that was one of Conrail's busiest routes, handling dozens of Conrail intermodals daily amongst the beauty of the Hudson River Valley and the Great Lakes;3. The Southern Tier, a scenic, broad-gauge engineering marvel in eastern Pennsylvania and New York State which, though long-dormant, came alive as Conrail's premier stack-train route; and4. Perhaps the photographic highlight of the book, Conrail in Pennsylvania, a state lauded for its Allegheny Mountain railways and Horseshoe curve and myriad coal lines and secondary branches amid bucolic beauty.Further chapters include coverage of Conrail's Midwestern operations in Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, its smaller branch lines, Conrail terminals, and epilog detailing Conrail's 1999 split between CSX and Norfolk Southern and a brief look at "Conrail" under its new owners.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: MBI; 1st edition (March 13, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 076031425X
• ISBN-13: 978-0760314258
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,978,788 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Profusely enhanced with color photography throughout, June 8, 2004

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Conrail (Railroad Color History) (Hardcover)

Throughout its 25 year history, Conrail was a freight line connecting most of the America's northeast's major cities and was especially noteworthy for clean locomotives, tight schedules, and heavy freight trains. The latest addition to the outstanding "MBI Railroad Color History" series, Conrail is the collaborative work of railroad enthusiasts Timothy Doherty and Brian Solomon. Profusely enhanced with color photography throughout, this well researched and deftly presented history is informed and informative reading, and an enthusiastically recommended addition to personal, academic, and community library Railroading History collection.

4.0 out of 5 stars Well done piece on Conrail, October 6, 2011

By 

Greg in Central Texas (Cedar Park, TX) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Conrail (Railroad Color History) (Hardcover)

Yet another in the Railroad Color History series, this one about Conrail is as good as the rest. It covers the history of the railroad very well, as well as its demise and the photos are superb. If you are a rail fan who appreciates great rail photography and a well written history, then this is for you. The Railroad Color History always does a fine job covering the various railroads and this is no exception.