The Railroad That Never Was

Vanderbilt, Morgan, and the South Pennsylvania Railroad

by Herbert H. Harwood, Jr.

Published by: Indiana University Press

184 Pages, 50 b&w illus., 20 maps

Paperback
9780253013798
Published: September 2015

$35.00

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eBook
9780253001559
Published: September 2010

$9.99

Hardcover
9780253355485
Published: September 2010

$42.00

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Description
Authors
Praise

This 200-mile line through Pennsylvania's most challenging mountain terrain was intended to form the heart of a new trunk line from the East Coast to Pittsburgh and the Midwest. Conceived in 1881 by William H. Vanderbilt, Andrew Carnegie, and a group of Pittsburgh and Philadelphia industrialists, the South Pennsylvania Railroad was intended to break the Pennsylvania Railroad's near-monopoly in the region. The line was within a year of opening when J. P. Morgan brokered a peace treaty that aborted the project and helped bolster his position in the world of finance. The railroad right of way and its tunnels sat idle for 60 years before coming to life in the late 1930s as the original section of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Based on original letters, documents, diaries, and newspaper reports, The Railroad That Never Was uncovers the truth behind this mysterious railway.

Herbert H. Harwood, Jr., has carried on concurrent careers as a railroad historian, writer, photographer, and working railroader. He is author of The New York, Westchester & Boston Railway: J. P. Morgan's Magnificent Mistake (IUP, 2008), Invisible Giants: The Empires of Cleveland's Van Sweringen Brothers (IUP, 2003), and The Lake Shore Electric Railway Story (IUP, 2000).

"[This] book is factual, well referenced, and well illustrated with vintage photos. It is an excellent acquisition for academic libraries with programs in history and business administration, and will also be valuable for public libraries."
~Choice

"Based on original letters, documents, diaries, and newspaper reports, The Railroad That Never Was uncovers the truth behind this now phantom railway.September 2011"
~NMRA Magazine

"This book is an important contribution to both rail and road history, as well as to business history and business strategy; it is therefore highly recommended."
~The Lexington Quarterly

"A superb piece of scholarship."
~John Spychalski, Pennsylvania State University

"An important story that deserves its rightful place in every railroad historian's library."
~Kurt Bell, archivist, Pennsylvania State Railroad Museum

The Railroad That Never Was

Vanderbilt, Morgan, and the South Pennsylvania Railroad

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