Goin' Railroading: Two Generations of Colorado Stories.

Margaret Coel, as told by Sam Speas.

ISBN 10: 0871088215 / ISBN 13: 9780871088215

Published by Pruett Publishing Company, Boulder, CO, 1991

About this Item

INSCRIBED AND SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR, MARGARET COEL. First Edition Thus (1991), First printing indicated by a complete numerical sequence. Very Near Fine in Wraps: just a hint of soiling to the bottom and top edges of the text block; else flawless; the binding remains square and secure; the text is clean. Free of creases to the covers. Free of creases to the backstrip. Free of any creased or dog-eared pages in the text. Free of any underlining, hi-lighting or marginalia or marks in the text. Free of ownership names, dates, addresses, notations, inscriptions, stamps, or labels. A handsome nearly-new copy, structurally sound and tightly bound, showing the faintest cosmetic flaws only. NOT a Remainder, Book-Club, or Ex-Library. 8vo. (9 x 6 x 0.75 inches). xiii, 180 pages. Liberally illustrated with black & white photographs. Language: English. Weight: 12.5 ounces. First Edition (1997), unstated. Paperback: Pictorial Wraps. This is a wonderful book combing the early history of Colorado and the narrow gauge and later standard gauge railroads. The railroads were the dominating force of progress in the mountainous terrain, bringing down coal, silver, gold and other minerals, while carrying supplies up to the mines and ranchers. The author captures the smell and sound of steam engines working the narrrow corridors of the mountains. It is like being in the cab, with the sounds of smoke pouring from the stack, steam gusting, whistle wailing, bell clanging, and fire roaring in the firebox, and the smells of coal and grease and hot metal combined with the lurching and pounding of the engine on the narrow gauge tracks. INSCRIBED AND SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR, MARGARET COEL. First Edition Thus (1991), First printing indicated by a complete numerical sequence.

Seller Inventory # 52180

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Goin' Railroading: Two Generations of Colorado Stories.
• Publisher: Pruett Publishing Company, Boulder, CO
• Publication Date: 1991
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0871088215
• ISBN 13: 9780871088215
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Seller catalogs:
  • Transportation: Railroads

About this title

Synopsis

As America, carried along by the expanding rail system, moved westward in the nineteenth century, few occupations seemed more exciting or romantic than that of railroad engineer. And in the mountains and plains of the West, long hours, backbreaking labor, bitter temperatures, and faulty brakes were the crucible in which the best of the early railroaders were formed: only the most dedicated and skilled men passed the tests the narrow-gauge lines of Colorado meted out. In Goin' Railroading, Sam Speas tells the story of his father, Sam Speas Sr., who left Missouri in 1883 to become an engineer in Colorado, and recounts his own experiences and those of his brothers and fellow railroaders on the Colorado and Southern Railway, from the golden era of the narrow-gauge lines in South Park to the final days of steam power on the Front Range and the coming of the diesel engine.

About the Author

Margaret Coel is the author of four nonfiction books and many articles on the people and placed of the American West. Her work has won national and regional awards. A native of Colorado, she resides in Boulder.