Goin' Railroading: Two Generations of Colorado Stories - Softcover

Margaret Coel; Sam Speas

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0870814974 ISBN 13: 9780870814976

Publisher: University Press of Colorado, U.S., 1999

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 this title

Synopsis:

In this book first published in 1985, Margaret Coel's father recounts his own experiences and those of his father and brothers in taking the trains through the mountains and across the plains of Colorado. He tells of the everyday hazards railroaders faced: long hours and backbreaking labour, winter blizzards and bitter temperatures, faulty brakes and runaways down the mountainside. He tells of the courage and dedication, and often gallantry the men and their families brought to the task of keeping the trains running. And he tells of the great adventure that was railroading for nearly a century, when trains ran to almost every town in Colorado and everyone rode the trains.

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.

About this edition

• Publisher: University Press of Colorado, U.S.
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0870814974
• ISBN 13: 9780870814976
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 194