Highly recommend to all railfans
346274
So many questions on the standard operating procedures of mechanically operated railroads in the United States have been answered by this book. To any railroad fan interested in railroad operations before the days of Centralized Traffic Control, I highly recommend this book.
259829
I bought this book having thoroughly enjoyed the author's "The Interurban Era".

I expected it to be good, but did not think he could produce another such classic. I was wrong.

This is an excellent book on tramcars, focused mainly on the US, but with an overview of the international scene.

The coverage of the development of the tramcar is excellently clear with the best background on the horse era I have yet read. The electrics are the stars, however, and the technical details of their development are spelt out with admirable quality.

Anyone curious as to the US trolley scene should start here and I am sure Americans particularly will love the street scenes of yesteryear. Production standards as to profusion and clarity of the pictures are just as high as in the companion volume.
4906896
Lots of rail maps and photos.  Recommend to anyone interested in trench railways
765218
I found Kem Parton's "End Of The Line" to be a great ride. It not only was exciting from beginning to end, it also caught the feel of real railroading. Having worked in the industry for 40 years I could identify with the feelings of the characters. It's been many years since I have read any book in under 2 days, but I did this one. As a retired rail I consider this book time well spent!!
4007301
If you are a rail fan this book is great. Interesting stories of the history of the many small rail operations working in a forest of giant redwoods.
482047
The author is one of America's finest railroad and transportation historians and he is at his best in writing about his home territory in Minnesota, Iowa and the Upper Midwest.  I was curious about the M& St. L from seeing as a kid its locomotives featured in Lionel's O-gauge catalog and this book will satisfy any rail fan or railroad professional's curiosity about this "fallen flag."  Don does an excellent job in bringing the railroad to life.  Although not having enough photos to my liking, Don makes up for it in a subsequent volume "The Minneapolis & St. Louis Railway: A Photographic History."  This volume will be a classic and is well worth the price and 5 stars.
2736546
This is a comprehensive look at the freight train graffiti movement in the Americas. It's a huge book that includes more than a hundred of the most influential writers in the scene. From the Pre and Sento cover to the present day, this book covers the history from end to end and in full color. Short passages explain who's who and what's what. It is amazing. You'd happily pay $50 for it, but luckily you don't have to. It's a must-have for any rail graffiti enthusiast.
815757
I received great service & it was a really good DVD. I am a railfan & would recommend this to any other railfan
4386450
I have to say that the Stirling single-wheel-driver locomotive is one of my favourites, but that has not led me to over-praise this book. This short book is an interesting read. It is heavily illustrated with many period photographs. Although printed in black & white, green ink is used for borders and occasional shading, plus some drawings. The only drawback for me was a number of `modern' photos of close-ups of the preserved 8-foot-sibgle wheeler, locomotive No. 1. These seem to be more arty than useful - a full page photo of the `No. 1' from the cabside, printed in green, for example, and full page photos of the chimney,  a lamp, and the boss of the driving wheel. However, that aside, there are enough photos of the original locomotives to make up for the fault.

The text by L.T.C. Rolt is as always informative and readable. "A legendary fame that time cannot tarnish" is from his introductory paragraphs. Although a short book, the author is able to describe the career of Patrick Stirling and describes the development of his various classes of locomotives in sufficient detail, as well as explaining his dedication to the single-wheeler; he didn't think very highly of coupled driving-wheels, and absolutely despised the `Atlantic' class of locomotives, though they were destined to replace his single-wheelers as train weights increased.

If you can find a cheap copy or borrow it from a library, it is worth the read.
1041469
Excellent pictures and histories of trains. I had been searching for information on the Sunset Limited that was in operation in 1954. So far this is the only book I have found with any information about it at all.
4529239
As is true for all volumes in the RGS Story series (currently up to 8), this book is exceptional. It's a study of the Rio Grande Southern railroad, specifically the portion of the railroad between the northern terminal at Ridgway and the branch line to Telluride, both in southwestern Colorado.
Included are detailed descriptions and photos from the early days of the railroad, including the history, equipment and facilities the RGS created or purchased in the 1890s.  There's a lot of detailed photos, drawings and track layouts of the engine and repair facilities at Ridgway, including the variations over the years.  Then the books moves up the line, mile by mile, examining the route, bridges, towns, sidings, depots, etc all the way to Vance Junction and into Telluride.  Telluride itself isn't covered much (that's Vol 2).
A must for any RGS fan, or anyone interested in the history of this part of the country during the 1890s - 1950s. As with every book in the series, this one includes many hundreds of photos, historical accounts, track plans, building and bridge drawings, and much more.
4756671
For the railroad historian, this book contains the ultimate collection of hand-drawn maps of an area including Illinois, Wisconsin, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.  Three other books produced so far in this series portray other areas.  For many railfans like myself, the trackage is a special interest, and 1946 was a great year for the amount of railroad trackage owned by the various railroads.  Studying this large format book allows the reader to see where the tracks went back then, whether or not they are still with us today.  It is amazing to view the amount of trackage in several of the larger gateway cities where rail lines converged.  The rail lines are drawn in various colors so that each stands out from the others.  Other indications include:  station names, junctions, yards, abandoned trackage, mileage, trackage rights, and so on.  Waterways are included, but not roads, so as to avoid confusing lines.  Upon close reading, I did find a very few errors, such as the labeling of Galesburg, MI with map 127A that was actually of Galesburg, IL, for example.  The fact that the book was printed in China is also a disappointment.  Overall, this is a great comprehensive railroad reference.
4864409
Great book!!!  I had no idea my train was worth this much.
220179
I have collected nearly all the books on the various railroad companies written by Tom Murray. I write articles on old farm tractors and machinery and the various small companies across the Midwest that made the tractors and machinery.  One of my favorite devices in these articles is describe in as much detail as possible the transfer of the tractors and machinery from the factory to a warehouse (sometimes called "blockhouse") and then to the local dealership. Since most of the farm machinery and tractors about which I write dates from the 1930s through the 1950s, I am interested in steam powered trains and the early diesel era.  Furthermore, I am interested in freight more than passenger trains and continually need more information on how freight was moved by rail during the steam and early diesel eras.  Toward this end, Tom Murray has never let me down.  I continually refer back to the appropriate book for more informtion as I write a particular article.

This particular book on the Chicago Northwestern Railway written by Tom Murray in 2008 was of particular interest to me, because I have referred to it so many times.  Many of the small towns in the Midwest where much of the "shortline" farm equipment(companies that made farm equipment without making farm tractors were referred to as shortline companies, e.g. the New Idea Company, the Owatonna Manufacturing Company) was made in towns served by the Chicago Northwestern Railway.

It is my continuing hope that Tom Murray will write more books on railways, especially a book on theu Soo Line.  This would be an apropriate book for him to write as, according to his biography, Tom Murray used to work for the Soo Line.

Brian Wayne Wells
1565404
I have never seen a book like this one.  There are books on trains, locomotives, steam and diesel, and railroad development, but this book occupies, it seems to me, a unique spot in Railroad information, as there has been seldom any treatment of what it was like to actually be a trainman--fireman, conductor, brakeman, engineer, stationmaster, etc.  Somehow the most important part of railroading, the personnel that made the industry function appear to be the last thing mentioned, and that only in passing.  This book not only is an excellent biography of a Pennsy RR Engineman during the salad days of Steam locomotion, but is a long needed treatment of what it was like to "Work on the Railroad."  I only wish there were more like it, that, as does this work, cover the details in depth of what it was, and is like:  working conditions, knowledge and skills needed, how the job was done,and so forth.  I can't give this book anything other than an A-double plus!
1714844
This is an excellent history of the small Middletown & Unionville Railroad. Predecessor of the Middletown & New Jersey Railway. Doug Barberio did an excellent job of recapping the history of this small railroad in an "Images of Rail' publication. The photos are sharp with captions very well written and knowledgeable. They take the reader through the 140 plus years of a resolute little railroad. Doug starts out with locomotives, equipment and then continues on down the line, station by station, from Middletown to Unionville. The last few chapters cover the Middletown & New Jersey Railway with its connections to the New York & Susquehanna Railroad and Sussex, New Jersey which is the end of the line for the NYS&W Hanford Branch. Many of the photos have not been seen before. I highly recommend this publication to all general history and the railroad fans. - R. Stone
63437
If you are a baby boomer who grew up along the Illinois Central you must have this book.  But even you are a railfan who grew up somewhere or sometime else, you will want this book for great photos of classic orange-brown-gold IC passenger trains of the postwar era, hauled by E-units or Geeps, in evocative rural and urban Illinois (and Iowa) settings.  The passenger train lasted long on the IC and most of the photos are of long, well-maintained trains before the decline set in.  Unlike some other IC books that just show the Panama Limited, City of New Orleans, and City of Miami over and over, this book has ALL the trains.  Not just those three but also plenty of photos of the trains we usually rode: the Seminole, the Louisiane, and the Southern Express  long consists of head-end cars, heavyweight coaches, and maybe a diner-lounge and a Pullman.  Of course, also the Chicago-St. Louis trains, the St. Louis-Carbondale connections, and all the Iowa trains; even a night shot of the Chickasaw.  All the depots: Chicago Central Station, Kankakee, Champaign, Effingham, Carbondale  Many little depots, too  e.g., the cover picture of Murphysboro, IL depot, with a train running down a brick-paved street strewn with autumn leaves and some 1950s cars in the background evokes SO many memories.  The primary contributing photographer (including that wonderful cover photo) is Brenda M. Bailey, who grew up in the Chicago area and went to college in Carbondale circa 1960.  Her photos cover almost all the trains in locations all over Illinois; she was quite possibly the first important woman railfan-photographer.  Later, she became a leading railfan in the San Diego area.  Although she passed away in 2004, she had the satisfaction of seeing this book published in 2002.  Richard Wallin is well-represented, including a stunning shot of a train in Springfield depot at dusk on Christmas Day with snow on the ground.  Chic Kerrigans 1940s photos show the early postwar era.  The text provides accurate history of IC passenger trains in Illinois from 1945 to 1971, with interesting descriptions of operations such as the switching and connections in Carbondale.