An academic study of the quest by explorers and later entrepreneurs
to find a way over California's mountain wall. Geographer Howard
discusses a critical development in the history of California, the
building of the first roads across the Sierra Nevada, tall and
snow-blocked mountains that, even at their easier passes, still
required days and even weeks to traverse. (The Truckee Pass, where
the Donner party met its doom and where Interstate 80 now cuts
through the Sierra, was especially difficult, and as Howard notes,
"the paralyzing effect of heavy snowfall remains a threat to
trans-Sierra transportation even today.") After surveying the
geography of montane California, Howard looks into the careers of
the 19th-century explorers who first established various routes
over the Sierra, notably Jedediah Smith, Joseph Walker, and John
Charles Fremont, and at the rush to build true roads after the US
government opened competitive bidding for mail delivery (Wells
Fargo eventually won) and Congress passed the Wagon Road Act of
1857, a precursor of the modern federal highway system. Howard
offers many interesting asides, some of them buried in endnotes,
about the intense rivalries between Golden State cities and
individuals to profit from the road-building enterprise. He also
notes that with the advent of transcontinental railroads many of
the earliest road builders' efforts were undone, largely because
the railroads had "the resources to blast and tunnel" their way
over mountain grades that would have been impassible for
horse-drawn wagons. Though well written, this book, born of the
author's doctoral dissertation, will appeal only to a specialized
audience. Even so, it is a solid if modest contribution to
19th-century Western history. (Kirkus Reviews)
A critical era in California's history and development - the
building of the first roads over the Sierra Nevada - is thoroughly
and colorfully documented in Thomas Howard's fascinating book.
During California's first two decades of statehood (1850-1870), the
state was separated from the east coast by a sea journey of at
least six weeks. Although Californians expected to be connected
with the other states by railroad soon after the 1849 Gold Rush,
almost twenty years elapsed before this occurred. Meanwhile,
various overland road ventures were launched by 'emigrants', former
gold miners, state government officials, the War Department, the
Interior Department, local politicians, town businessmen,
stagecoach operators, and other entrepreneurs whose alliances with
one another were constantly shifting. The broad landscape of
international affairs is also a part of Howard's story.
Constructing roads and accumulating geographic information in the
Sierra Nevada reflected Washington's interest in securing the vast
western territories formerly held by others. In a remarkably short
time the Sierra was transformed by vigorous exploration,
road-promotion, and road-building. Ox-drawn wagons gave way to
stagecoaches able to provide service as fine as any in the country.
Howard effectively uses diaries, letters, newspaper stories, and
official reports to recreate the human struggle and excitement
involved in building the first trans-Sierra roads. Some of those
roads have become modern highways used by thousands every day,
while others are now only dim traces in the lonely backcountry.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
