By the time of the Civil War, the railroads had advanced to allow the movement of large numbers of troops even though railways had not yet matured into a truly integrated transportation system. Gaps between lines, incompatible track gauges, and other vexing impediments remained in both the North and South. As John E. Clark explains in this compelling study, the skill with which Union and Confederate war leaders met those problems and utilized the rail system to its fullest potential was an essential ingredient for ultimate victory.

This magnificent memoir is filled with photographs of various types of locomotives hauling military movements and wartime freight in the US, plus passenger trains turned troop carriers. Highly recommended.

The "iron horse" became a major weapon in the first war fully dependent on railroads. Moreover railroads would escalate and prolong the war. Leavy provides a study of trains in the Civil War through photographs and a rich narrative

Trains to Victory tells the dramatic story of the years 1941-1945 when U.S. railroads, using fewer cars and locomotives than in WWI, moved more tonnage and more passengers than ever before. Divided into 13 chapters, plus a 32-page four-color section, an introduction, bibliography and a complete index, the volume appeals to railfans, historians, military historians, and many others. The 380-page hardbound book features 542 photographs, an additional 285 illustrations, a four-color laminated dustjacket and a complete listing of U.S. military camps, posts and bases as of August 1, 1941. The book discusses the implications of the war on the railroads, embarkation of troops and materiels, how the Military Railway Service joined the fight and what was happening on U.S railroads during the war. It also addresses new railroad cars and locomotives built for the war, military camp railroads, how Alaska’s railroads played a part in the conflict, how women helped the war effort, and what was happening in foreign theaters. It describes how railroads aided in the return of wounded troops and equipment, and the atmosphere on the railroads immediately after the war. Scale drawings of war-emergency box cars are also included, as are troop train car plans. Trains to Victory covers such topics as the huge Chicago & NorthWestern Proviso Yards during wartime, personal glimpses of the war from a number of railroaders and intriguing aspects of the war from the Army Engineers, Association of American Railroads and the War Department. Wartime products of locomotive and railroad car manufacturers such as Baldwin, Alco, Davenport, Lima, Whitcomb, Budd, Electro-Motive, H.K. Porter, Pullman, American Car & Foundry and the St. Louis Car Company are documented throughout the volume. Hardbound, 8½ x11", 380 pages, 825 photos and illustrations, 32-page all-color photo section, 13 chapters, extensive historical military/railroad documentation.