Guide for the Pennsylvania railroad with an extensive map; including the entire route, with all its windings, objects of interest, and information useful to the traveller

[Pennsylvania Railroad]

Published by T.K. and P.G. Collins [for the Pennsylvania Railroad], Philadelphia, 1855

About this Item

Philadelphia: T.K. and P.G. Collins [for the Pennsylvania Railroad], 1855. Octavo (8 15/16" x 5 11/16", 229mm x 142mm). [Full collation available.] With a hand-colored lithographed folding map after Herman Haupt: "Map of the Pennsylvania Rail Road from Harrisburg to Pittsburg [sic]; and of the Columbia & Lancaster & Harrisburg R. Rs. from Philadelphia to Harrisburg." Bound in the publisher's printed boards, backed in green cloth (re-backed). Copyright slip pasted to the front board. Re-backed, with the end-papers renewed. Soiled generally. Tanning to the initials and end-matter, particularly at the rear, with some foxing. Mild peripheral tanning throughout. Irregular folding and creasing to the map, with scattered tanning and some splits to the folds. The Pennsylvania Railroad, before it became the largest railroad in the world, was born out of worries by the Pennsylvania state government that the Erie Canal would hurt freight traffic crossing the Keystone State. The Erie Canal gave the port of New York a clear advantage over Philadelphia, and so, in the 1830's, a complex system of canals and railroads was built to link Philadelphia with Erie, on the shore of Lake Erie in the northwestern part of the state. This system - called the Main Line of Public Works - was an absolute disaster. The time needed to change between railroads and canals, and the tendency for canals to freeze in the winter, forced the state to consider an all-rail route across the state. This, however, was no easy feat: unlike the New York Central Railroad's "Water Level Route," which ran across the flat valleys of Western New York, a theoretical cross-Pennsylvania route would have to cross the Allegheny Mountains. In 1846, however, the Pennsylvania Railroad - affectionately known as the Pennsy - was created, and in the next 8 years, they completed a line from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh. The book, and more specifically the route map, provides a first-hand snapshot into the very beginnings - only nine years after its founding - of the giant that was the Pennsy. The text portion of the book also provides an extremely detailed insight into the development of the areas near stations, offering readers surrounding sights, recounted tales, and local history. This vast map (71 3/4" x 9 â… ") shows the full railroad just after it had opened, as well as some nearby rail lines also affiliated with the Pennsylvania Railroad. In dashed lines, the map shows impractical routes, never to be realized, in addition to the main line -- a threat to the state government that unless given control of it, they would bypass the well-established Main Line cities and towns.Catalogued by Jonah Kramer.

Seller Inventory # JBK0002

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Guide for the Pennsylvania railroad with an extensive map; including the entire route, with all its windings, objects of interest, and information useful to the traveller
• Publisher: T.K. and P.G. Collins [for the Pennsylvania Railroad], Philadelphia
• Publication Date: 1855
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Very good
• Seller catalogs:
  • History
  • Americana