For those of you seeking a more "people"-based history of 19th c. American transportation, there's a wonderful new book just written by the esteemed Jack White, former Smithsonian Transportation Curator.

It's called "Wet Britches and Muddy Boots: A History of Travel in Victorian America," published in late 2012 by Indiana University Press.

White devotes individual chapters to emmigrant travel, railroad coach travel, 1st class railroad travel, as well as omnibuses, trolleys, carriages and stage coaches, coastal and lake steamers, riverboat steamers, ocean steam and sail, human burden and taxis, etc. He explains what it was like to travel by each mode of transportation, how much it cost, difficulties encountered, general travel conditions good and bad, and other aspects. Included are photographs, drawings, diagrams, engravings, and an index.

A percentage of the proceeds from each book sold will be earmarked for the Walter Havighurst Rare Book Library of Miami University (of Ohio), White's alma mater. Much of the book is adapted from a college course White taught on the subject while serving as a Miami adjunct history professor several years ago.

It is also available as an e-book, Jack's first venture into such pursuits. See this link:

http://www.iupress.indiana.edu/product_ ... _id=783988

I highly reccommend it.

K.R. Bell

Mr. Bell,

Thanks, I'm adding this to the list of "to purchase" books.

David

Reminds me of a book about the California Gold Rush of 1849: There were three ways to reach the "diggins": By ship around Cape Horn, one of the world's legendary centers of miserable weather; by ship to Panama, then a wretched slog through fever swamps, then wait for a ship on the Pacific side, and hoping you didn't catch a fatal tropical disease during the wait--which could be a while if the ship you might have boarded was stuck in San Francisco with no crew; or across the Great American Desert in a covered wagon, hoping you could make it to the next water source before you and your draft animals perished from thirst. When people complain about Amtrak or airlines, I say, just be glad that your trip is measured in hours, not weeks and months.

I'd also recommend the book "The Good Old Days, They Were Terrible."

Taylor

I have used the term "Bad Old Days" to refer to the early days at Orange Empire, before we had servicing pits, electric car jacks, carbarns, trolley power substations and fork lifts. I'm sure old timers at other railway museums can relate to this list, and maybe add a few more entries.

Another good read on rail travel in the 19th Century is Ernest Duvergier de Hauranne's "A Frenchman in Lincoln's America". Oddly, there's no free copy on Google Books, although it's LONG out of copyright:
http://books.google.com/books/about/A_F ... jhAAAAMAAJ

Thanks, Kurt! Ordered.