Grand Central's Engineer: William J. Wilgus and the Planning of Modern Manhattan (The Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical and Political Science)
Schlichting's new book is a stellar example of the importance of university presses. It profiles the chief engineer of the New York Central Railroad, the man 'who first presented his revolutionary plans for a completely new Grand Central'... Wilgus would continue to languish in obscurity had not Johns Hopkins University Press chosen to showcase him by printing his biography.(Steve GoddardHistory Wire - Where the Past Comes Alive)Schlichting is very good at providing the economic and political context for Wilgus's work... A very well-researched, well-organized, well-written account. Highly recommended.(Choice)The single best analysis we have of freight transportation in an early twentieth-century U.S. city.(Clifton HoodJournal of American History)Reconsidering accomplishments—and those who accomplished them—that predate our collective living memories is an important and rewarding exercise, especially when done as well asGrand Central’s Engineer, which celebrates William J. Wilgus both for his pioneering and visionary work on the terminal and for his subsequent work in transportation planning.(Ray BertCivil Engineering)Schlichting does more than revive the reputation and importance of William Wilgus; he also provides a fascinating, well-researched, and important case study for how expertise and rational, comprehensive planning was necessary to solve the problems of the modern City.(Joshua A. BrittonJournal of Urban History)