American Narrow Gauge Railroads by George W. Hilton

Abstract

TECHNOLOGY AND CULTURE Book Reviews 817 France that the Russian tsar Alexander I turned, at the beginning of the 19th century, for assistance in the improvement of communica­ tions. Considerable development and research were carried out by the French engineers at St. Petersburg, with P.-D. Bazaine and A. de Bet­ ancourt y Molina at the forefront. Szostak refers to French admiration for British roads, citing Charles Dupin, who went to England after the end of the Napoleonic Wars. There are much earlier examples, however. In 1785, the French en­ gineer P.-C. Lesage commented on the efficient turnpike system he saw during his visit, and he observed, significantly, that even the king was obliged to pay. Indeed, he attributed much ofBritain’s greatness to the political system and trade barriers favoring British products. Szostak is in agreement with modern writers who recognize the primary im­ portance ofinternal markets, and he maintains that internationaltrade leaves better records for the historian. Yes, internal developments come first, but Britain’s maritime superiority facilitated expansion. Northern France was lacking in harbors; he might have pointed out that Cherbourg was destroyed by the English in 1758! Szostak makes useful comparisons and provides surveys of French and English industry but does not discuss the political issues of 1789 on and their repercussions on production, as governments supported efforts to borrow British technology. This could have been expanded with an account of the long history of industrial espionage by private individuals and even Ponts et chaussées engineers. Certain omissions could be rectified; there are irritations like the reference to the Tours ofArthur Young, which does not appear in the bibliography. However, the work is useful and well researched, with a fairly thorough review ofthe literature. Traditional arguments, like the superiority ofEnglish coal, are refuted, but what is missing is depth of political analysis. Margaret Bradley Dr. Bradley lectures in the Department of Languages, Politics, and History at Coventry Polytechnic. Her publications include “Franco-Russian Engineering Links: The Careers of Lamé and Clapeyron, 1820-1830,” Annals of Science, vol. 38 (1981), “Civil Engineering and Social Change: The Early History of the Paris École des ponts et chaussées,” History of Education, vol. 14 (1985), (with Fernand Perrin) “Charles Dupin’s Study Visits to the British Isles, 1816—1824,” Technology and Culture, vol. 32 (1991), and “Engineers as Military Spies? French Engineers Come to Britain, 1780— 1790,” Annals of Science, vol. 49 (1992). American Narrow Gauge Railroads. By George W. Hilton. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 1990. Pp. xiii + 580; illustrations, maps, tables, notes, index. $60.00. George Hilton, professor of economics at the University of Cali­ fornia, Los Angeles, has written a definitive study of American narrow gauge railroads from the days of the initial “narrow gauge 818 Book Reviews TECHNOLOGY AND CULTURE movement” in the 1860s and 1870s to the present. Railroad historians will find the format of Hilton’s work familiar since it follows the pattern set in an earlier volume, The Electric Interurban Railways in America (1960), coauthored with John Due. Hilton’s latest book has two parts. The first is a general history of narrow gauge railways, with chapters dealing with the economics of the technology, rolling stock, locomotives, and physical plant. The second part contains a brief history of each American narrow gauge common carrier. Hilton’s work excludes purely industrial lines. The narrow gauge movement had its origins in Great Britain during the mid-19th century. One of the initial lines, the Festiniog, was a Welsh railway built to serve quarries. An early British narrow gauge proponent was Robert F. Fairlie, who designed an unusual double-end locomotive that he claimed provided economical and reliable freight transport. The 1860s were a propitious time for narrow gauge railway lines, not in Great Britain, which was standard­ izing on the 4-foot, 81/2-inch gauge, but in the British Empire. Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and India were in the first flush of railway development. These countries, short of capital, needed the cheapest possible railway infrastructure, and therefore it is not surprising that large narrow gauge systems arose in places such as Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, New Zealand, South Africa...