Diverging Tracks

The advent of mass railroad travel in the 1800s saw the extension of a system of global transport that developed various national styles of construction, operation, administration, and passenger experiences.
Drawing on travel narratives and a broad range of other contemporary sources, this history contrasts the railroad cultures of 19th century England and America, with a focus on the differing social structures and value systems of each nation, and how the railroad fit into the wider industrial landscape.

Trevor K. Snowdon, Ph.D., has worked as a social researcher and as a tertiary level teacher and administrator. He is currently an independent scholar and writer, living in Auckland, New Zealand.

Trevor K. Snowdon
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 305
Bibliographic Info: notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2019
pISBN: 978-1-4766-7154-3
eISBN: 978-1-4766-3245-2
Imprint: McFarland

Preface 1
Introduction 5
One. Nineteenth Century England: A Very Strange Railroad
System in a Very Strange Society? 11
Two. The Carceral Experiences of the 19th Century
English Railroad Passenger 51
Three. Nineteenth Century America: A No Less Strange
Railroad System in a No Less Strange Society? 93
Four. Traveling with the Passenger on the 19th Century
“Classless” American Railroad 144
Five. The Safety of Railroad Travel in 19th Century
England and America 195
Six. The “Railroading” of Consciousness in the 19th Century 236
Conclusion 269
Chapter Notes 273
Selected Bibliography 293
Index 295