The History of American Railways: Kansas and Beyond (Paperback or Softback)

The History of American Railways: Kansas and Beyond is a book for both railroad enthusiasts and history buffs. In this fascinating history, Tammy Hammond describes how early steam locomotives like “The Tom Thumb” operated on short lines just a few miles long. But America was expanding according to Manifest Destiny, a belief that the United States should gain all territories from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific. And it did – through railroads!

This book explains how small lines merged into larger ones that completed the First Transcontinental Railroad in 1869 at Promontory Summit, Utah. Take a ride with the author as she describes the entrepreneurs who industrialized America with steel rails and determination.

For those who like the romance of the Old West, there is information on how the Iron Horse – large steam locomotives – barreled through cowtowns to bring settlers from the east to Kansas and beyond.

The book also describes the folklore of railroads in pages on ghost trains, Jesse James, Butch Cassidy, John Henry, and the funeral train of Abraham Lincoln. The History of American Railways is a work of love that Tammy has dedicated to The Golden Belt Model Railroad Association.