|
|
Books > Sport & Leisure > Transport: general interest > Trains & railways: general interest
With dramatic and previously unpublished images, Steam in the
North: Railways in the 1960s across the North of England is more
than just a book of record. It places an emphasis on what it felt
like to be there - the emotions, sounds and impressions that this
poignant period triggered. Also included are recollections of the
challenges faced by enthusiasts ranging from the discouraging
attitudes of railway staff to the hair-raising experiences of the
ambitious hitchhiker. Complementing the author's previous books on
steam power in the North East, this book covers the Midland and
West Coast mainlines, as well as Lancashire and Yorkshire as
British Railways' working steam fleet approached its inevitable
end. The images look at the environment for working steam in its
final months - the empty fells and rainy platforms, the gritty
outline, hard-working freight as well as express passenger
services. They will bring back nostalgic memories for those who
remember the railway network in the 1960s, but also appeal to those
who enjoy dramatic scenes of the Pennines and the industrial parts
of northern England.
*New & expanded edition!* The London Underground is a pioneer
and an institution. The first underground railway in the world, and
incorporating the first ever deep tunnel 'tube' lines too, it is at
the heart of London life, with millions of commuters and tourists
using it every year and its tentacles extending into the suburbs it
helped to create. Its turbulent history reflects the trials and
tribulations of London itself: it provided a network of life-saving
shelters in the Blitz, but has also faced many logistical
challenges, with constant improvements necessary to keep the Tube
fit for purpose. This book is not a recompilation of facts and
photos published elsewhere, however. Taking a fresh approach, it is
a history that focuses on the interesting and quirky aspects of the
subject. To transport you more vividly back to the past, well over
half the illustrations are in colour, including many rarely seen
photographs.
Through 215 nostalgic black and white photographs plus track plans
and operating data, this latest addition to the Railway Memories
series takes us back to the time when Sherwood Forest was a
bustling hive of coal mining and railway activity, when such places
as Mansfield, Worksop, Retford, Shirebrook and Tuxford were busy
railway hubs, when Retford was graced by the most famous
steam-hauled expresses, when colliery branch lines meandered into
the depths of the forest in search of modern 20th century
collieries, and when steam was king. Some more recent scenes which
have also passed into history are included.
Nottingham-based Bill Reed, now 78, was a fireman on steam
locomotives in the early part of his working life, eventually
graduating to being a driver on diesel-electrics. Much of his spare
time has been taken up with photographing (in black and white and
using colour slides) many aspects of railways throughout Great
Britain, Europe (including the former Iron Curtain countries) and
in the USA. In this selection he has used convenient vantage points
on and off the East Coast main line to capture the Indian summer of
steam. Many of the familiar classes of locomotives A1s, A2s, A3s,
A4s (and their variants) are featured with pin point sharpness by
Bill. But a few early diesels are featured too like the prototype
Deltic. Familiar customs once associated with steam traction are
brought to mind again in a collection of over 220 black and white
images. An example is seen at Muskham Troughs where Gresley's
thirsty engines picked up water in a seemingly primitive but
effective way - in the middle of the track - to help speed them on
to their respective destinations. This book is part of one man's
life work of photographing the railways and his enthusiasm is
evident in every picture.
Over 140 photos accompanied by extended captions written by Robin
Atthill illustrate the beauty and variety of scenery that attracted
visitors and photographers from far and wide toi this legendary,
much-loved line. Atthill researched the history of the S&D in
depth and described the 'sturdy individuality' of a line that had
to deal with the challenges of difficult operating conditions and
fluctuating seasonal holiday traffic.
Crossroads of a Continent: Missouri Railroads, 1851-1921 tells the
story of the state's railroads and their vital role in American
history. Missouri and St. Louis, its largest city, are
strategically located within the American Heartland. On July 4,
1851, when the Pacific Railroad of Missouri began construction in
St. Louis, the city took its first step to becoming a major hub for
railroads. By the 1920s, the state was crisscrossed with railways
reaching toward all points of the compass. Authors Peter A. Hansen,
Don L. Hofsommer, and Carlos Arnaldo Schwantes explore the history
of Missouri railroads through personal, absorbing tales of the
cutthroat competition between cities and between railroads that
meant the difference between prosperity and obscurity, the
ambitions and dreams of visionaries Fred Harvey and Arthur
Stilwell, and the country's excitement over the St. Louis World's
Fair of 1904. Beautifully illustrated with over 100 color images of
historical railway ephemera, Crossroads of a Continent is an
engaging history of key American railroads and of Missouri's
critical contribution to the American story.
In 1838 Thomas Edmondson, an employee of the fledgling Newcastle
& Carlisle Railway, revolutionized the ticket issuing process
in Britain and left an enduring legacy: the Edmondson ticket.
Purchased as proof of the contract between passenger and railway
company, the ticket was a receipt, travel pass and an ephemeral
record of almost every train journey ever taken in the British
Isles, reflecting the nostalgia of the railways and a period of
history when the movement of millions of people brought together
England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The railways printed millions
of tickets for every conceivable journey and category of passenger.
Most were destroyed after use, but remarkably many survive, in the
care of libraries, museums and collectors, and form the basis of a
fascinating hobby.
O.S. Nock continues his account of the GWR 4-4-0s with a further
look at G.J. Churchward and his programme of modernisation and
standardisation, particularly in boiler design, and his
introduction of the 'County' class - the last of the new GWR
designs. He goes on to describe the impact of two world wars; the
implications for the 4-4-0 classes post-Grouping, with particular
regard to the Cambrian section; the start of withdrawals in the
1920s and the introduction of the 1930 hybrids, nicknamed the
'Dukedogs'. Nock's trademark detailed text, accompanied by copious
photographs and locomotive layout diagrams, includes run logs and
his descriptions of footplate trips including a notable one made on
City of Truro.
Progress on the nation's second transcontinental railroad slowed in
1873. The Northern Pacific's proposed middle-the 250 miles between
present Billings and Glendive, Montana-had yet to be surveyed, and
Sioux and Cheyenne Indians opposed construction through the
Yellowstone Valley, the heart of their hunting grounds. A previous
surveying expedition along the Yellowstone River in 1872 had
resulted in the death of a prominent member of the party, the
near-death of the railroad's chief engineer, the embarrassment of
the U.S. Army, and a public relations and financial disaster for
the Northern Pacific. Such is the backdrop for Custer and the 1873
Yellowstone Survey, the story of the expedition told through
documents selected and interpreted by historian M. John Lubetkin.
The U.S. Army was determined to punish the Sioux, and the Northern
Pacific desperately needed to complete its engineering work and
resume construction. The expedition mounted in 1873-larger than all
previous surveys combined-included "embedded" newspaper
correspondents and 1,600 infantry and cavalry, the latter led by
George Armstrong Custer. Lubetkin has gathered firsthand accounts
from the correspondents, diarists, and reporters who accompanied
this important expedition, including that of news correspondent
Samuel J. Barrows. Barrows's narrative-written in a series of
dispatches to the New York Tribune-provides a comprehensive, often
humorous description of events, and his proficiency with shorthand
enabled him to capture quotations and dialogue with an authenticity
unmatched by other writers on the survey. The expedition marched
west from the Missouri River in mid-June of 1873 and, in three
months, covered nearly 1,000, often grueling miles. Encompassing
the saga of transcontinental railroading, cultural conflict on the
northern plains, and an array of important Indian and
Anglo-American characters, Custer and the 1873 Yellowstone Survey
will fascinate Custer fans and anyone interested in the history of
the American West.
|
|