Synopsis
This book presents first hand, historic and personal accounts of the work that made Sacramento the hub of the transcontinental railroad and Western railroading, interspersed with easy-to-understand explanations of the Sacramento Shops' significance to engineering, transportation, and development of the west. Included in the compilation are the most significant and interesting news and information from many Southern Pacific Bulletins and local newspapers spanning 1863-1940. Included are stories of:
- The triumph over fire and flood in the flatlands and on the grade to Donner Summit
- The history of snow equipment and structures on the line from Sacramento to Truckee
- The evolution of the refrigerator car to maintain food freshness
- The pursuit to maintain accurate timepieces and schedules
- The lives and livelihoods of Sacramento Shop workers
- The development and importance of the railroad watch
- The history of dining car service
- The Pullman Strike of 1894
- The science of fuel savings in the age of steam locomotives
- The large emphasis on safe equipment mandated by federal regulations
About the Authors
Stephen Nemeth has enjoyed railroads since he was able to see one. A volunteer at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, California, Stephen shares his excitement about trains and railroad history with anyone who will listen. He has spent over 40 years exploring sites from Sacramento to Promentory that have historical importance to the Central Pacific, Southern Pacific, and Union Pacific railroads in addition to the Sacramento Locomotive Works. Of particular interest are the early accounts of building the railroad over the Sierra and the transcontinental railroad.
Robin Martin runs Two Songbirds Press, an editorial services business located in Sacramento, California. While working in a nationally-known literary agency, Robin reviewed queries and proposals, acquired manuscripts, performed developmental and line edits, advised substantive edits, and learned the ins and outs of all aspects of the publishing business. Books she worked on were acquired and published by Wiley, Career Press, and Gibbs Smith. Robin has worked with historical, literary, and women's fiction, as well as finance, health, self-help, memoir and cookbooks in non-fiction. From the Valley to the Summit: The inseparable connection between the Sacramento Shops and the Transcontinental Railroad is the first railroading book she has edited. Robin is also the managing editor at the non-fiction literary magazine Under the Gum Tree. Her work has been published by: Spuyten Duyvil Press, Narrative Magazine, Rain Taxi, Word Riot, Calaveras Station, Mothers Movement Online, Gently Read Literature, and the American River Review; and, she was a staff reviewer for the San Francisco Book Review and the Sacramento Book Review for five years.
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