Peter Murray Hain

Peter Murray Hain grew up in PA and NJ where his father was a civil engineer with the Pennsylvania Railroad. After graduating from the University of Tennessee (B.S. Journalism), he signed on with the Central Intelligence Agency’s Clandestine Service where he spent 13 years overseas in Europe and SE Asia. His operable foreign language is German and he has readability in French. After retiring from the CIA, he embarked on writing the history of the Manhattan Elevated Railway, based primarily on the career of his great-grandfather’s brother, Frank K. Hain, who was Chief Operating Officer of the “el” for 16 years, i.e., for most of its existence. While railroad historians might think that such a highly visible railroad would be the subject of many histories, it is not so. There are 3 or 4 books that report on various aspects of the “el,” but none are as detailed and comprehensive as Hain’s work, which is largely from original research, including over 5,000 news items in the NY Times and other newspapers. The book has been well-received by railroad historians and fills a gap in mass transit history. In addition to his book, Hain has written numerous op-ed commentaries for a regional daily newspaper, dealing with issues of (1) intelligence & national security and (2) revenue-producing NCAA athletics.