Book: America’s Great Railroad Stations. (NEW Oct. 2011)Photos by Roger Straus III and text by Ed Breslin and Hugh Van Dusen.

North Bennington Vermont,(1880) Photo by Roger Straus III

Toward the end of the year, we can count on some blockbuster books emerging to tempt us as we do holiday shopping.  I already told you about one of my favorites, in the Ten Perfect Gifts for Travelers Who Read post. Here’s another one.

At first I thought that America’s Great Railroad Stations would appeal to the narrow range of railroad “nuts”–those people who gobble up everything that has to do with choo-choos.  But as I paged through the book, I realized that even though I don’t count myself as one of that crew, I thoroughly enjoyed the trip across America.  My interest lies in the amazing story the railroad architecture tells us about the power of the railroads in the 19th and early 20th century, about the way that the country’s economy and general sense of well-being affected architectural creations, and how these stations tell more about our country’s history–a subject I’m always interested in.

My interest in railroad history was piqued when I read and reviewed Appetite for America, the biography of Fred Harvey who worked with the railroads to “civilize the west”. There I learned the meaning of “union” station. In the early days of railroading, each railroad had its own terminal, so you’d be faced with several in one city. It was more practical for the railroad companies to pool their resources and operate out of a “union” station.

San Antonio Sunset Station (1902) Photo by Roger Straus III, now home of Sunset Station Entertainment complex.

One more thing that sets the wheels of my brain turning in Great Railroad Stations is the story of preservation. In these pages you will see plenty of examples of where it has been done well (D.C. ‘s Union Station) and some very sad examples (New York’s Penn Station) when it failed. I also like the stories of creative measures taken by communities to save their stations.

The writers, however, apply a rather heavy hand in their appeal for preservation. While the photography is magnificent (and tempts me to look up at least one other travel-inspiring book by the photographer, Roger Straus ,

 Houses of the Founding Fathers) I found the writing awkward and over done. The photographs and their captions say nearly everything you need to know.

Garrison Station, New York (1900). Photo by Roger Straus III. Across the river from West Point, now houses a theater.

Although this book necessarily is limited to some of the grander examples of stations, with a few smaller ones of particular interest included (like Garrison Station- above), it made me think of all those small towns across the country that have rescued their stations to turn them into a tourism center or store. But others  (not all in the book) have become art colleges, sprawling restaurants (San Antonio Sunset Station–above), hotels (Nashville Tennessee houses a Wyndham),  or the home of excursion trains. Don’t you love the creativity that emerges when communities pull together? And how many times have the railroad stations served as that magnet that pulled the community together?

NYC Grand Central Terminal (1913) , Photo by Roger Straus III

My earliest imaginary travels included listening to the radio show, Grand Central Station. Part of the fascination of railroad stations are the stories they hint at. Think of all the literary uses of railroad stations– those movies where the chugging of wheels denotes the passage of time and movement through space. OR all the tearful farewells, with one person on the train and the other following them down the walkway getting one last glimpse. Makes me teary just to think of it.

I should mention that my hometown station, the Tucson Southern Pacific is one of the choices in the book. It is still used as an Amtrak station, but has more business as a trendy restaurant, Maynard’s  and a small railroad museum. My personal favorite railroad stations for travelers, both of which are included in America’s Great Railroad Stations, are Union Station in Washington, D.C., where you can still take trains, but also shop and dine; and Cincinnati Union Terminal, now a museum center, which was one of my absolute favorite visits in Cincinnati. The building is sleek Art Deco, the murals inside show midwestern history, and every inch of the vast space is crammed with delights.

Although I avoid traveling by Amtrak in most parts of the country, I was rather surprised when I stated recalling how many railroad stations (or former stations) I had visited in my travels. Of the ones in the book, I’ve visited Grand Central, Washington Union, Tucson, Santa Fe Sunset, Cincinnati, Sacramento, and Chicago Union, plus many others which did not make the book. Which, I guess, makes rail travel still an important part of the American travel experience, even if you’re not on the choo-choo itself.

Have you visited railroad stations in your travels–or former railroad stations? Tell us about your favorite.

Disclaimers: Amazon links included here are for your convenience. Although it costs you no more to use them to get to Amazon, each purchase provides a few cents to help A Traveler’s Library operate.  All photos are supplied by the publisher, who also supplied a review copy of the book. 

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Waiting for a Train

Destination: Anywhere the train goes

Book: Waiting on a Train: The Embattled Future of Passenger Rail Service by James McCommons (released Nov.5)

My brother-in-law, Wayne Price is a foamer. My sister doesn’t deny it, although he might. I know that he has filled an entire room with an exquisite miniature railroad, all scenery made by hand, and I know that he reads several train magazines and even wrote an article for one, but I would never have called him a foamer, had it not been for this new book. Professional railroad men designate people who are avid fans of railroads and railroading–somewhat in the nature of trainspotters in England–foamers (as in foaming at the mouth–a bit mad). This is an example of the delightful detail James McCommons entertains us with while he is educating us about railroads in the United States. You might call this a road trip for trains, and definitely a travel guide book to the best and worst of American train rides.

So naturally, when the publishers sent me a review copy of Waiting on a Train, I sent it on to Wayne for an expert opinion. As you will see in this excerpt from his note to me, he liked the book, but to prove he is a foamer–he found an error.

“The author uses a good style of relating his travel experiences and weaving in the history, both old and more recent of the particular rail line that he is riding,” Wayne writes. “He lets the reader draw conclusions about the problems with passenger rail service and how they evolved. He doesn’t really discuss his opinions until the Epilogue, although I expected the conclusions he reached. The primary reason for the declining rail service in some areas is funding and the fact that the federal government has supported air and auto travel, but not rail. This was the case before Amtrak and has generally continued since Amtrak was created during the Nixon administration.”

” There is new optimism under the Obama administration and the funds that have been allocated to high speed rail in the Stimulus package.” [Note: See tomorrow's post here with links to several interesting train articles, including one about President Obama's plan for trains. VMB]

Wayne continues: “Several states are ahead of the curve and ready to invest state funds, with the federal funds that that are now becoming available to create regional transit projects that will be linked by Amtrak. California, Washington, Illinois, and the Northeast Corridor are the areas with shovel-ready projects that should benefit the most. One of the best success stories related to rail travel is Amtrak’s Downeaster between Boston and Portland Maine. Patricia Quinn is the executive director of the organization responsible for the Downeaster which is heavily funded by Maine and Massachusetts. This is an example of the funding partnership that is necessary to make rail travel a viable part of the overall transportation solution.”

And here comes the kind of detail that foamers relish: “I found only two errors; on pages 98 and 261 he refers to the Richmond depot as ‘Stafford Mills’. In reality it is ‘Staples Mills’.”

Despite my kidding Wayne about his near-obsession, I appreciate very much his taking time to share his thoughts. If you are looking for a really good travel book that will inspire you to look into American rail travel, this is the one.

Photo attribution: Creative Commons

The Internet Review of Books has a particularly good review of Waiting on a Train, if you would like to read more about this road trip book by train. And please come back tomorrow for an update on latest news on trains and train travel. Challenge: Where does the title of the book come from?

This content is a post from: A Traveler's Library To comment on this post or search for related information, click on the link to A Traveler's Library. We'll leave a light on for you.

©2012 A Traveler's Library. All Rights Reserved.