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The Old Iron Road
An Epic of Rails, Roads, and the Urge to Go West
by David Haward Bain
ISBN: 0670033081
ISBN-13: 9780670033089
Format: Hardcover
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Bibliographic Details
Publisher: Penguin Group USA
Published date: 2004
Size: 6.75 x 9.5 inches
Weight: 1.75 pounds
Pages: 434
Publisher's Notes
The award-winning author of Empire Express describes his and his family's odyssey west as they retraced the entire route of the first transcontinental railroad, offering a fascinating glimpse of the American spirit of adventure, determination, and character that led to its construction, as well as the journeys that shaped both his own heritage and American history.
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Last Train to Paradise
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Last Train to Paradise is acclaimed novelist Les Standiford’s fast-paced and gripping true account of the extraordinary construction and spectacular demise of the Key West Railroad—one of the greatest engineering feats ever undertaken, destroyed in one fell swoop by the strongest storm ever to hit U.S. shores. In 1904, the brilliant and driven entrepreneur Henry Flagler, partner to John D. Rockefeller and the true mastermind behind Standard Oil, concocted the dream of a railway connecting the island of Key West to the Florida mainland, crossing a staggering 153 miles of open ocean—an engineering challenge beyond even that of the Panama Canal. “The financiers considered the project and said, Unthinkable. The engineers pondered the problems and from all came one verdict, Impossible. . . .” But build it they did, and the railroad stood as a magnificent achievement for twenty-two years. Once dismissed as “Flagler’s Folly,” it was heralded as “the Eighth Wonder of the World”—until a will even greater than Flagler’s rose up in opposition. In 1935, a hurricane of exceptional force, which would be dubbed “the Storm of the Century,” swept through the tiny islands, killing some 700 residents and workmen and washing away all but one sixty-foot section of track, on which a 320,000-pound railroad engine stood and “gripped its rails as if the gravity of Jupiter were pressing upon it.” Standiford brings the full force and fury of this storm to terrifying life. In spinning his saga of the railroad’s construction, Standiford immerses us in the treacherous world of the thousands of workers who beat their way through infested swamps, lived in fragile tent cities on barges anchored in the midst of daunting stretches of ocean, and suffered from a remarkable succession of three ominous hurricanes that killed many and washed away vast stretches of track. Steadfast through every setback, Flagler inspired a loyalty in his workers so strong that even after a hurricane dislodged one of the railroad’s massive pilings, casting doubt over the viability of the entire project, his engineers refused to be beaten. The question was no longer “Could it be done?” but “Can we make it to Key West on time?” to allow Flagler to ride the rails of his dream. Last Train to Paradise celebrates this crowning achievement of Gilded Age ambition, a sweeping tale of the powerful forces of human ingenuity colliding with the even greater forces of nature’s wrath.
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An Epic of Rails, Roads, and the Urge to Go West (Qty: 30)
Bain, David Haward
Viking Adult, 11-May-2004. Hardcover. REMAINDER. May contain remainder marks. Over 3.5 million customers served. Order now. Selling books online since 1995. Few left in stock - order soon. Code: A20081117171210C ( more information)
Offered by A1Books (United States)
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11)
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The Old Iron Road: An Epic of Rails, Roads, and the Urge to Go West
Bain, David Haward
New York, New York, U.S.A.: Viking Penguin, 2004 a solid copy; ---------- SATISFACTION GUARANTEED --------- FAST, COURTEOUS SERVICE ------ ALL DUSTJACKETS ARE COVERED WITH NEW CLEAR MYLAR PROTECTOR -----. First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine Hardback/Fine Dustjacket. Illus. by Illustrated with Photographs. 6 x 9". Map Endpages. ( more information)
Offered by P. C. Schmidt, Bookseller (United States)
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12)
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The Old Iron Road An Epic of Rails, Roads and the Urge to Gowest
David Haward Bain
New York City: Viking Penguin Inc.. As New in As New dust jacket 2004. First Edition; First Printing. Hardcover. Fine condition. Contents are tight, bright and clean, free of any internal markings or personalizations. All books to US destinations include free tracking and are securely packaged to avoid damage. The DJ is protected by a Brodart mylar sleeve. ; Remainder; Photographs, Drawings and Maps; 9 1/2"H x 6 1/2" W; 434 pages . ( more information)
Offered by NORM JOHNSON, BOOKSELLER (United States)
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26)
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The Old Iron Road: An Epic of Rails, Roads, and the Urge to Go West
Bain, David Haward
New York, New York, U.S.A.: Viking Press, 2004. Hardcover, 434 pages in fine condition with fine dustjacket. 1st edition, 1st printing. Not a remainder. The author and his family left their home in Vermont in 2000 and headed west in search of America's past. Between the Missouri river and the Golden Gate, they retraced the entire route of the first transcontinental railroad and large stretches of the Oregon and California trails. Following vanished iron rails and wagon wheel ruts, bumping down backroads and main streets, they discovered the deep, restless, unquely American spirit of adventure that connects our past to our present. He encounters a fascinating cast of characters, both historic and contemporary_ from Mark Twain and Willa Cather to Henry Fonda and Marlon Brando. . First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine/Fine. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. ( more information)
Offered by Lavender Path Antiques and Books (United States)
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27)
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The Old Iron Road: An Epic of Rails, Roads, and the Urge to Go West (Qty: 3)
Bain, David Haward
Viking Adult. Hardcover. 0670033081 Excellent Condition First Edition ~ 1st Printing Hard cover book with paper dust jacket cover! May have remainder line, Clean pages, Dust jacket has no tears, mild shelf rubs, this book is Near NEW! Shop & Save with us at kjcactusbooks! . Fine. ( more information)
Offered by Kjcactusbooks (United States)
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31)
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THE OLD IRON ROAD: An Epic of Rails, Roads, and the Urge to Go West
Bain, David Haward
New York, New York, U.S.A.: Viking Press, 2004. Fine, in fine, mylar-protected dust jacket.. ISBN: 0670033081. First Edition, First Printing. Hard Cover. Fine/Fine. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. UNITED STATES HISTORY LOCAL STATE. ( more information)
Offered by Joe Staats, Bookseller (United States)
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32)
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The Old Iron Road An Epic of Rails, Roads, and the Urge to Go West
Bain, David Haward
Viking Adult. New in New dust jacket. 2004. First Edition; First Printing. Hardcover. New first edition, first printing partial cloth hardcover and dust jacket in excellent condition. Protective mylar cover.; 1.47 x 9.3 x 6.56 Inches; In the summer of 2000, David Haward Bain and his family left their home in Vermont and headed west in search of America’s past. From Omaha to San Francisco, Bain and his family retraced the entire route of the first transcontinental railroad. Following abandoned railroad tracks and the traces of old wagon trails, cruising down back roads and main streets, they discovered the deep, restless, uniquely American spirit of adventure that connects our past to our present. . ( more information)
Offered by SVIRDEN BOOKS (United States)
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33)
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The old iron road : an epic of rails, roads, and the urge to go West
Bain, David Haward
New York : Viking Press, 2004. 1st Edition. Impressively map and photo illustrated. Includes bibliographical references (p. [399]-412) and index. Subjects: Railroads--United States--History. West (U.S.)--History. Fine cloth copy in an equally fine dw. Particularly and surprisingly well-preserved; tight, bright, clean and especially sharp-cornered. Literally as new. ( more information)
Offered by MW Books Ltd. (Ireland)
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34)
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The old iron road : an epic of rails, roads, and the urge to go West
Bain, David Haward
New York : Viking Press, 2004. 1st Edition. Impressively map and photo illustrated. Includes bibliographical references (p. [399]-412) and index. Subjects: Railroads--United States--History. West (U.S.)--History. Fine cloth copy in an equally fine dw. Particularly and surprisingly well-preserved; tight, bright, clean and especially sharp-cornered. Literally as new. ( more information)
Offered by MW Books Ltd. (Ireland)
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35)
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THE OLD IRON ROAD
Bain, David Haward
New York: Viking, 2004. Signed by Author. 1st Edition, 1st Printing. Hard Cover with Jacket. As New, Unread/As New. In the summer of 2000, David Haward Bain and his family left their home in Vermont and headed west in search of America's past. From Omaha to San Francisco, Bain and his family retraced the entire route of the first transcontinental railroad. Following abandoned railroad tracks and the traces of old wagon trails, cruising down back roads and main streets, they discovered the deep, restless, uniquely American spirit of adventure that connects our past to our present. A superb writer and an exacting researcher, Bain conjures up the marvelous sense of coming unstuck in time as he lingers in the ghost towns and battlegrounds, prairies and river ports, train yards, museums, and diners that line the old emigrant routes of the railroad and the Lincoln Highway. As he cruises west to California, Bain encounters a fascinating cast of characters, both historic and contemporary-from Willa Cather to Marlon Brando, from pathfinder John Fre“mont to naturalist Terry Tempest Williams. Here, too, are memories of Bain's own grandparents and the journeys that shaped his own heritage. David Haward Bain is the author of four previous works of nonfiction, including Empire Express and Sitting in Darkness, which received a Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Book Award. His articles and essays have appeared in Smithsonian, American Heritage, Kenyon Review, and Prairie Schooner, and he reviews regularly for The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, and Newsday. He is a teacher at Middlebury College and the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference. . 434 Pages w/Index. Nonfiction, History. ( more information)
Offered by Bar-Ken Books (United States)
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