A Century Of Railway Travel

From the Edwardian golden age of steam to the present, the railway has captured the hearts and imaginations of the British people like no other mode of travel. In wartime and peace, along major routes and minor, steam, diesel and electric trains have carried commuters to work, families to holiday destinations and provided the means to myriad other adventures – the train a constant presence in an ever-changing way of life. A Century of Railway Travel presents one hundred years of the British passenger's story, using striking full-page imagery with commentary from bestselling author Paul Atterbury. From the open platforms of provincial stations before the First World War to the modern throngs at Waterloo on Derby Day, and from compartments that separated rich from poor and male from female, to the rise to dominance of modern standard class, this book depicts the rich tapestry of progress and heritage that has been the last century of British train travel. The coloured card ticket in your hand, the rough feel of the upholstered seats, and the call of the whistle, the scenery begins to move across the carriage windows of one of Britain's great steam-trains: with full-page illustrations and text alive with insight and nostalgia, this is a passenger's history of train travel in the last century.

The impact of constant technological change upon our perception of the world is so pervasive as to have become a commonplace of modern society. But this was not always the case; as Wolfgang Schivelbusch points out in this fascinating study, our adaptation to technological change—the development of our modern, industrialized consciousness—was very much a learned behavior. In The Railway Journey, Schivelbusch examines the origins of this industrialized consciousness by exploring the reaction in the nineteenth century to the first dramatic avatar of technological change, the railroad. In a highly original and engaging fashion, Schivelbusch discusses the ways in which our perceptions of distance, time, autonomy, speed, and risk were altered by railway travel. As a history of the surprising ways in which technology and culture interact, this book covers a wide range of topics, including the changing perception of landscapes, the death of conversation while traveling, the problematic nature of the railway compartment, the space of glass architecture, the pathology of the railway journey, industrial fatigue and the history of shock, and the railroad and the city. Belonging to a distinguished European tradition of critical sociology best exemplified by the work of Georg Simmel and Walter Benjamin, The Railway Journey is anchored in rich empirical data and full of striking insights about railway travel, the industrial revolution, and technological change. Now updated with a new preface, The Railway Journey is an invaluable resource for readers interested in nineteenth-century culture and technology and the prehistory of modern media and digitalization.

"Inter-city rail travel is one of the dominant facts of modern life. From the early nineteenth century, when the first train stations - "cathedrals of technology," buildings without precedent in the history of architecture - were constructed, these focal points of transportation have enjoyed a unique status in public life. They have come a long way from the simple wooden shed erected in Liverpool, England, in 1830." "In the wake of the rail renaissance of the 1980s and 1990s, new train stations, from the U.S. to Japan, must respond to increasingly complex challenges, as high-speed trains become more and more common and the next generation of magnetically levitated trains approaches. The state-of-the-art examples featured in Modern Trains and Splendid Stations are analyzed from several perspectives: as generators of urban renewal; as new architectural icons; and as connecting points from different means of transportation. Such internationally renowned architects as Helmut Jahn (in the United States), Nicholas Grimshaw (in England), and Arata Isozaki (in Japan) have all been involved in station design."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

For the century after 1865 all the largest railroad companies had flagship luxury trains, spectacularly appointed steamliners offering unrivaled standards of service and thoughtful amenities including ladies' perfume and carnations for gentlemen. These luxury trains transported well-heeled passengers in grand style across spectacular American landscapes in an atmosphere of privilege and elegance. Including the iconic Super Chief of the Sante Fe Railway and New York Central System's fabled 20th Century Limited, they became legends in their day and for decades after their last runs. This beautifully illustrated book allows readers to experience the exhilarating journeys, the exquisitely designed train cars and the vintage advertisements and posters that together made up the passenger's experience during this golden age of train travel – an age still remembered and celebrated today.

This anthology celebrates 200 years of railway history and railway writing. The author has made a fascinating, wide-ranging selection from factual and fictional accounts to illustrate the attractions of train travel and the human side of running a railway. He includes memorable extracts describing rail travel in Britain, continental Europe, Canada, the USA and India which give a vivid impression of the development and diversity of railways since the pioneering days of the early 1800s. The quotations have been chosen for their inherent historical interest and insight, the quality of the writing and for the extraordinary events they record. His collection will be fascinating reading for railway enthusiasts and for everyone who knows the charm of travelling by train. Famous authors feature in the collection - Charles Dickens, John Masters, L.T.C. Rolt - but there are many evocative, well-written accounts from less-well-known rail travellers. Also featured are tales of innovative engineering, wartime railways, narrow-gauge railways, railway disasters and heroism, speed records, diesel development and the determination of the railway preservation movement.

A riveting, visually engaging collection of vignettes highlighting the rich heritage of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Since its founding in 1881, Canadian Pacific has made an indelible mark on the lives of Canadians. Most commonly associated with its iconic railway, at its height CP also ran hotels, steamships, and an airline, and had myriad involvements in immigration, irrigation, resource development, war contributions, and international trade. It has been said that no other single corporation has shaped Canadian national identity as much as CP. Railway Nation: Tales of the World’s Greatest Travel System is a compilation of more than fifty thrilling and historically significant stories based on colourful anecdotes and archival sources dating back to the company's golden era. From the construction of the ground-breaking Spiral Tunnels on what was previously the most dangerous and accident-prone stretch of railway track in the Rockies, to the CPR-manufactured Valentine tanks that helped the Soviet Union fight off the Nazis in World War II, to the long and frustrating struggle of CP stewardesses fighting against sexist employment policies, this lively and nuanced portrait of an iconic company is illustrated with fascinating archival photography and will be an essential addition to any Canadian history buff's library.