The second volume in the history of the Union Pacific begins after the financial panic of 1893, one of the worst depressions Americans had yet experienced, which pushed the railroad into bankruptcy. Maury Klein examines the complex challenges faced by the Union Pacific in the new century—the expanding role of government and its restrictive regulations, the growth of labor unions, the devastating effects of two world wars, and the growing competition from new modes of transportation—and how, under the innovative and influential leadership of Edward H. Harriman, the Union Pacific again played the role of industrial pioneer. Union Pacific has remained one of the strongest railroads in the country, surviving the eras of government regulation and the corporate mergers of the past twenty-five years. Insightful, definitive in scope, rich in colorful anecdotes and superb characterizations, Union Pacific is a fascinating saga not only of a particular railroad but also about how that industry transformed America. Maury Klein is professor of history at the University of Rhode Island. He is the author of several books, including the Pulitzer Prize finalist The Life and Legend of Jay Gould.
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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A different focus,
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This review is from: Union Pacific: Volume II, 1894-1969 (Paperback)
This book focuses almost entirely on financial and corporate politics of the Union Pacific and how that plays out with other railroads and the government. Less than 20% of this book is devoted to locomotives, freight cars, track, issues of building new lines, technology, passengers, stations, the products shipped, dispatching, or what it was like to work on the railroad. You won't find anecdotes or stories of battling the elements or dealing with wrecks. An exception is a description of the Salton Sea and the railroad's efforts to control the flooding that threatened the communities around the sea. But the transition from steam to diesel, for example, gets perhaps a page at most.
The personality of Harriman dominates the first part of the book and we get - in great detail - his battles with other railroad presidents. Financing issues, struggles with the always clueless ICC - that's what the focus is on. The author is a little prone to see things entirely from the Union Pacific perspective but since that is probably underrepresented in other writings, so it may be OK. To be sure, as the book moves into the 20's and 30's there are chapters on labor and other topics -- the streamliners get a little play too. But the author's focus is almost always on the top leaders and how they are dealing with each other as much as anything else. So am I not recommending the book? No, the book can be a useful antidote to too much railroad fan-based writing that excessively focuses on paint schemes and the shape of air filters. But it is not a fully-rounded portrait of the company as a transportation enterprise and the culture it created.
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little zip, iron hat, big boss, nonrail assets, most railroad men, parts changers, rail leaders, rail presidents, rail managers, transcontinental business, rail executives, midwestern roads, weak roads, transcontinental traffic, rubber program, new holding company, railroad affairs, rival roads, consolidation scheme Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Union Pacific, Southern Pacific, New York, Rock Island, Northern Pacific, Los Angeles, Illinois Central, Short Line, Central Pacific, Sun Valley, Rio Grande, Averell Harriman, Judge Lovett, Salt Lake, San Francisco, Supreme Court, Great Northern, Wall Street, Western Pacific, Kansas City, Northern Securities, San Pedro, Roland Harriman, George Gould, Missouri Pacific Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
little zip, iron hat, big boss, nonrail assets, most railroad men, parts changers, rail leaders, rail presidents, rail managers, transcontinental business, rail executives, midwestern roads, weak roads, transcontinental traffic, rubber program, new holding company, railroad affairs, rival roads, consolidation scheme Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Union Pacific, Southern Pacific, New York, Rock Island, Northern Pacific, Los Angeles, Illinois Central, Short Line, Central Pacific, Sun Valley, Rio Grande, Averell Harriman, Judge Lovett, Salt Lake, San Francisco, Supreme Court, Great Northern, Wall Street, Western Pacific, Kansas City, Northern Securities, San Pedro, Roland Harriman, George Gould, Missouri Pacific Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
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