Long Island Rail Road

Long Island Rail Road by Fischler, Stan. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780760326855.

Chartered in 1834, the Long Island Rail Road is still running today and is the oldest American railway operating under its original name. It is also the busiest commuter railroad on the continent and carries well over 81 million customers per year. This illustrated history of the LIRR begins with a brief look at its origins with the Brooklyn & Jamaica Railroad in 1832, and at the line’s early attempts to reach Boston via Long Island and ferry service to Connecticut. Author Stan Fischler tells the fascinating story of Pennsylvania Railroad’s purchase of the LIRR in 1900, the construction of Penn Station and tunnels into Manhattan, and the building of LIRR’s diesel and electric rolling stock and passenger cars. Archival and modern photography, route maps, print ads, and timetables recreate the drama of this iconic commuter railroad from 1834 to the present, including such colorful tales as Mile-a-Minute Murphy and the Great Bicycle–Long Island Rail Road Race.