Tag Archives: trains

The Age of Steam

Posted on August 22, 2014 by smellincoffee

A Brief History of the Age of Steam© 2007 Thomas Crump288 pages For most of human history, transportation over land has been prohibitively expensive, limited to highly lucrative goods like silk. Trade grew from the rivers, as did civilization. But … Continue reading →

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A Splendid Exchange

Posted on May 6, 2014 by smellincoffee

A Splendid Exchange: How Trade Shaped the World© 2009 David Bernstein496 pages            History oft moves with the caravans and trade fleets, and its journeys along the routes  of the past and present are given a storied account … Continue reading →

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The Men Who United the States

Posted on December 27, 2013 by smellincoffee

 The Men Who United the States: America’s Explorers, Inventors, Eccentrics and Mavericks, and the Creation of One Nation, Indivisible© 2013 Simon Winchester496 pages The Men who United the States is a storied account of how the American people came to … Continue reading →

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Uncommon Carriers

Posted on October 2, 2013 by smellincoffee

Uncommon Carriers© 2006 John McPhee256 pages Uncommon Carriers invites readers to spend a day in the life of a truck drivers, ocean-going cargo ship and riverbound freight tugboat pilots, train engineers, UPS aviators, and — just for good measure — … Continue reading →

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Getting There

Posted on July 19, 2013 by smellincoffee

Getting There: the Epic Struggle  between Road and Rail in the American Century© 1996 Stephen Goddard366 pages Regardless of the status of George Washington, Napoleon Bonaparte, and William Pitt, each man of power traveled at the same speed as the … Continue reading →

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Railroad Stations

Posted on February 26, 2013 by smellincoffee

Railroad Stations: the Buildings that Linked the Nation© 2012 ed. David Naylor336 pages For the past couple of weeks I’ve been slowly enjoying Railroad Stations: the Buildings that Linked the Nation, a collection of photographs of the United States’ wide … Continue reading →

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Waiting on a Train

Posted on February 9, 2013 by smellincoffee

Waiting on a Train: the Embattled Future of Passenger Rail Service© 2009 James McCommons304 pages You leave the Pennsylvania Station ’bout a quarter to four, Read a magazine and then you’re in Baltimore! Dinner in the diner, nothing could be … Continue reading →

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