Customer Reviews

The Historical Guide to North American Railroads: 160 Lines Abandoned or Merged Since 1930

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After studying North European Railroads for some years, I wanted a new topic to work with. Railroads in USA was choosen as the next challenge. First priority was to get an overwiev of the major systems, and after searching... I settled for this title, and what a good choice. The book has lots af basic information about all significant Rail Roads in USA and to some degree also in Canada and Mexico. Geografic and historical information is presented in a clear fluent language. Scematic maps and standard tables help to digest the many data. There are much information in this book, which one does not go through in one evening although it can be read from start to end, it will also serve as a reference in the future. Good interesting pictures in B&W adds to the good impression.

In the past seven decades the American railroad industry has undergone sweeping changes including a bewildering sucession of mergers. This book is a useful starting place to try and make sense of it.

The contents are arranged alphabetically by road name. Each railroad is covered in a one (or more) page historical summary. Remember, summary is the operative word here. Don't go to this guide expecting to find exhaustive coverage of railroad history.

Some entries include sketch maps, a picture or two of equipment, cuts of company logos, and suggestions for additional reading. Many of the reading lists, however, are dated - the book's major shortcoming.

Notwithstanding, you'll find this volume useful when looking at a map or doing some research and asking yourself questions such as, "Who did that piece of track belong to and what happened to the company?" or "Whatever happened to the road that used to run through my town?"

This is probably the best book of its kind, but it has some deficiencies over the first edition. I couldn't find the entry for the Interstate Commerce Commission (which article is mentioned in the introduction). I also disliked relegation of the railroader biographies to a section in the back, without the photographs (instead of as sidebars near the entry for the railroad whose history they effected). However the inclusion of the Union Pacific, which is still extant, was a good idea. I still like the book, but it could have been better.

The Historical Guide to North American Railroads is an excellent quick reference to railroads merged or abandoned since 1930. It is brief and gives a thumbnail history of each railroad and even gives maps of the major mainlines for most of them. There are several revisions of this book with the newer versions adding extra information about newer mergers as time went on. The book gives you references to other sources for further in depth information on each railroad covered. It does not cover most of the smaller railroads or interurban commuter lines.

another must have for train watchers but the lack of color pix is surprising in a book published after 1950; the attempt to include some maps is to be applauded but more of them would be appreciated; another thumbs down for Kalmbach as a publisher