Classic Steam: Timeless Photographs of North American Steam Railroading

Classic Steam: Timeless Photographs of North American Steam Railroading by John. Gruber. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9781435114289.

Classic Steam charts the final decades of steam railroading in North America, from the late 1930s through to the early 1960s, in some 300 stunning black and white and color photographs. Every aspect of steam railroading operations is covered, from shortlines and narrow-gauge railroads to stations, grand “Limited” passenger trains, and freight services. Produced in association with the Center for Railroad Photography and Art, Classic Steam features the work of some of the most highly acclaimed photographers of the era, and draws on the collections of leading museums and archives. Features some 300 stunning color and black and white photos—many previously unpublished—of the last years of North American steam. Every aspect of working railroad operations is covered, while the final chapter, “Still Steaming,” profiles preserved steam today, the length and breadth of North America. Includes photographs by some of the finest photographers of yesterday and today, including Frank Barry, Lucius Beebe, Charles Clegg, Jack Delano, Donald Duke, James Gallagher, John Gruber, Richard Gruber, Philip R. Hastings, Joel Jensen, Richard H. Kindig, J. Parker Lamb, Russell Lee, O. Winston Link, David Plowden, Barclay Robinson, Ted Rose, Jim Shaughnessy, Richard Steinheimer, and Steve VanDenburgh. A feature in every chapter focuses on a topic of particular interest, from “A Job for the Section Crew”—about a day in the life of a section crew on the narrow-gauge Rio Grande in the 1960s—to women railroad workers in World War II, “Women Break the ‘GreaseCeiling.’”