num_pages: 190
description: Within the pages of this book lie the pictorial story of the Iron Horse in North America, a stirring saga of railroading that goes hand in hand with the history and development of our nation.Through the wonderful medium of the camera it has been possible to record the growth of the steam locomotive, from birth pangs to the peak of its existence, from the cradle to the grave. Come with a locomotive engineer and stroll through the scenes of yesteryear, through the shadowy roundhouses of history and out along the gleaming ribbons of silver that reached from the Atlantic to the Pacific, Canada to Mexico.The illustrations in this album come from a wide variety of sources; from private collections generously shared, from the files of locomotive builders, the archives of national institutions, and from the historical records of various railroads. In selecting the photographs the author has endeavored to choose those that best tell the story of mechanical growth, including the primitive Iron Colts of the 1830's, the rapid advances to better and more efficient designs, and the crowning achievements of engine builders. Chapters have been devoted to exhibition power, displayed at a number of expositions, and to odd and unusual locomotives, to speed queens, freight hogs, and the humble switchers.Brief histories of many early railroads have been included in the caption material, along with thumbnail sketches of some of the country's obscure pikes. The bulk of the material covers the era from the beginnings of steam railroading to the turn of the century, and special effort has been made to avoid duplicating any of the material in the author's four previous pictorial books on historic railroading.
language: English
title: A Locomotive Engineer's Album
publisher: Superior Publishing Company