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Rival Rails by Walter R Borneman

Rival Rails tells the story of the American railroad dream, connecting the coasts with ribbons of steel. Borneman tells the story of several railroads and their quest to build a transcontinental line from the first line built by the Central Pacific and Union Pacific, to the later, and more southerly Southern Pacific and Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe routes. Though very well written, and thoroughly researched, the book left me wanting more (and less).

The title and subtitle lead you to believe the book would chronicle all of the major transcontinental railroad routes. The preface, however, is an indication to the later chapters of the book. In the preface’s first paragraph, it says “[A] better, shorter, less snowy route through the corridors of the American Southwest, linking Los Angeles to Chicago.”

The chapters of Part I summarize the Pacific Railroad Bill, the completion of the first transcontinental route, and ends with the introduction of the Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe; and the Denver, Rio Grande. Though briefly, it does hint at the way the Central Pacific and Union Pacific succeeded by way of land grants, made false land surveys.

Part II begins with Southern Pacific’s issues passing into Arizona from California, and Yuma AZ, and then leads into the fight between the Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe; and the Denver, Rio Grande for various routes out of the plains of Colorado. We get several chapters chronicling the Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe and Southern Pacific’s fight of territory, from Texas, to New Mexico, then learn about the Atlantic & Pacific, a Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe subsidiary, which nearly completed Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe’s transcontinental dream, becoming the third transcontinental route. Chapters then discuss the battle of California, Colorado, and Mexico, ending with the Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe’s expansion into Chicago, and the subsequent passenger ticket price wars.

Part III focuses on the Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe, and their way of succeeding. Chapters discuss everything there is to know about the Santa Fe from late 1880’s to the late 1920’s. We learn about Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe Harvey House service, and the Belen Cut Off. Part III ends with a short chapter on late era streamlined passenger trains of the 1940’s.

The Afterword is worthy of a read, as it goes beyond the 1950’s with the decline of passenger trains, the merger of the Denver & Rio Grande Western and Southern Pacific, after the failed merger attempt of the Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe and Southern Pacific, then briefly notes the Burlington Northern and Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe merger that created todays BNSF Railway. It also mentions that the combined Denver & Rio Grande Western and Southern Pacific were sold to the Union Pacific a year after the BNSF merger. By 1996, the routes discussed in the book were in the hands of two large railroads. In fact, all the western railroad routes, including those not fully discussed, that of the Northern Pacific, and Great Northern are all controlled by these two remaining western railroads.

Drawing upon my own personal knowledge of American railroads, I was able to determine that the book it historically accurate. I checked facts and figures against books in my own collection, such as the great Santa Fe books The History of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe by Pamela Berkman and Santa Fe...Steel Rails Through California by Donald Duke. Rival Rails contains a large amount of information not available elsewhere in one source. However, judging by the book title, and then reading the book, I was left wanting more.

I wish the book had spent a little more time discussing the relation of the routes progressing across the northern routes. The routes of the Northern Pacific and Great Northern were scarcely mentioned. I felt that they should have been included, as they play a part in the history of why the southern routes were favored, and gained more popularity.

The Northern Pacific route was completed in 1883, the same year that the Southern Pacific and Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe met at Needles CA, and the Southern Pacific completed its own sunset route. Great Northern’s route was complete in 1893, five years after the first Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe train made in to Los Angeles on its own tracks (1887, with the purchase and connection to San Bernardino of small railroad, the Los Angeles & San Gabriel). Late comer to the transcontinental railroad business, the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (Milwaukee Road) reached the Pacific coast in 1909. The Milwaukee Road’s line was abandoned in 1980, even though it had better grades and was the shortest of the routes. Rival Rails does not mention the Milwaukee Road (look for The Nation Pays Again by Thomas H Ploss, for that story).

He states that “Much of has been written about America’s first transcontinental railroad, but driving the golden spike as Promontory Summit in 1869 signaled merely the beginning of the transcontinental railroad saga.” While a large portion of the transcontinental railroad saga was left out, much more information was included on the Santa Fe.

Rival Rails is a book written to chronicle the southern routes, and heavily favors the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe. Judging by Borneman’s introduction, he favored the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe due to the experiences of his youth. The book contains 22 chapters, 16 of them have some, or all, of the chapter dedicated to the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe. The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe has its own part; Part III is named “Santa Fe All the Way.” This severely biased view of the transcontinental system can leave a reader thinking the book was written by, or for, Santa Fe fans. I feel that, for a book to retain the feel of being unbiased, no more than half the book should be dedicated to it.

I enjoyed reading the book, and renewing my personal knowledge of the history of American transcontinental railroads. Even though I felt that there should have been more hints as the routes connecting in the north, and that Borneman clearly favored the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe, I cannot criticize him all that much. I personally favor the Santa Fe myself, and have a deep admiration for the sheer talent that it took for those early railroaders to succeed against all their competitors.

© 2012, 2019, Josh Baakko, https://www.modelrailroadtips.com