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Nothing Like it in the World: The Men Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad 1863-69
"Nothing Like It in the World" gives the account of an unprecedented feat of engineering, vision, and courage. It is the story of the men who built the transcontinental railroad -- the investors who risked their businesses and money; the enlightened politicians who understood its importance; the engineers and surveyors who risked, and sometimes lost, their lives;...more
Paperback, 432 pages
Published
November 6th 2001
by Simon & Schuster
(first published 2000)
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Ambrose is the Grissom of history. The book is a very easy read and unfortunately is filled with repeated annedotes between chapters, supported by secondary sources, and missing context. This is the story of the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads, the men behind them, and the race to build the transcontinental railroad meeting at Promitory Summitt in Utah. There is some interesting stories about the Mormans and Brigham Young wanted to get the railroad to Salt Lake City (went throu...more
There is a vocal contingent of people who like to criticize Stephen Ambrose for his methods and style, who don't consider him a true historian. I have an engineering degree and in college took humanities courses kicking and screaming, and as such I don't get the argument against him. What I do understand is that Ambrose brings history to life and this book was no exception. Before picking up this book, I had no interest in the history of the transcontinental railroad, but after only a couple ...more
A history book to help you remember why you dreaded history class in the first place.
The building of the Transcontinental Railroad was the single most important feat of engineering in the 19th Century. It took the better part of 6 years to complete. It required countless lives, limbs, and treasure. It was the brainchild of the grandest swindlers of that or any era, men whose ill-gotten railroad wealth would later shame even the most extravagant Americans. Immigrants descended on the We...more
The building of the Transcontinental Railroad was the single most important feat of engineering in the 19th Century. It took the better part of 6 years to complete. It required countless lives, limbs, and treasure. It was the brainchild of the grandest swindlers of that or any era, men whose ill-gotten railroad wealth would later shame even the most extravagant Americans. Immigrants descended on the We...more
Hi family - I know I'm not supposed to add books that I've already read, but I figured you'll allow me a freebie to get started.
Bought this book because of my ongoing love affair with railroads, but to be perfectly honest what kept me interested wasn't the descriptions of working life on the railroads or the railroad's influence on American culture. Instead, this book focused on the important and unique partnership between the Union Pacific, Central Pacific and the United States gover...more
Bought this book because of my ongoing love affair with railroads, but to be perfectly honest what kept me interested wasn't the descriptions of working life on the railroads or the railroad's influence on American culture. Instead, this book focused on the important and unique partnership between the Union Pacific, Central Pacific and the United States gover...more
The first 100 pages of this book drew me in. Lincoln's great interest in the transcontinental railroad was previously unknown to me. The story of Theodore Judah was fascinating. Judah was the man who might be considered the "father" of the Central Pacific and devoted his life toward bringing it to life, but died of yellow fever (age 37), the week after the first rail was laid. Nevertheless the entire railroad was built almost exactly to the specifications of his vision.
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The story of the transcontinental railroad. Built between 1863 and 1869 between Omaha and Sacramento when the area was still unexplored and untracked wilderness. The railroad tied the east and west together, allowing freight and passengers to travel from the east coast to California in a week in relative comfort, where before it had taken months by ship. In addition, the telegraph line laid over the same route allowed messages to be passed from coast to coast instantly.At the time it was the big...more
A terrible display of scholarship. As one who majored in history in college, is a railroader, and lived 100 feet from the Southern Pacific tracks on Donner Pass I cannot pan this book enough. I have to believe that if I had ever been a student of Dr. Ambrose he would have flunked me (And rightfully so) had I turned in work like this to him. There are more mistakes in this book than I could keep track of--He couldn't even keep track of simple geographical locations. I have seriously questione...more
I thought this book was okay. The building of the railroad was a monumental feat and I wanted to know more about it. There was a lot of information in this book, maybe too much and the book seemed to drag at some points because of it, especially on the chapters concerning the money that went into it. The other problem I had with it was that many, many people have said the author has gotten numerous facts wrong with this book. So the entire time I was reading the book I was wondering what was tru...more
What other event in history pitted two major powers against each other in a race that involved extreme financial and physical risk? How about the race to the moon? That's what this story reminded me of. Two railroads, headed by powerful and devious men scheme to lay more track than the other and thereby obtain more government subsides and land grants. It is also a story of Chinese laborers versus (primarily) Irish immigrant laborers and the stark contrast between their attitudes about the wo...more
I was surprised how I got bogged down in this book. I had read "Undaunted Courage" and "Citizen Soldiers" and enjoyed them well enough, but this one was just a long dull slog. Well researched, I suppose, but poorly written. The descriptions of the Chinese workers tunneling through the Sierra Nevadas were interesting, but the rest... well, the author really seems to have phoned this one in. And the repetition! An example: "Mail that once cost dollars per ounce and took fo...more
California's riches lay on the west coast. The nation's industry, government, and military lay on the east coast. Between lay stretches of prairie and desert populated by hostile indians. The only sea route? A multi-month voyage through some of the world's most treacherous waters. Clearly, America needed a transatlantic railroad! But first ambitious men had to conceive, plan, and fund it, lay thousands of miles of track by hand through deserts, the Sierras and the Rockies, shovel tons of e...more
Jared Shipley
added it
This is my first Ambrose book. An extremely detailed, sometimes tedious, account of the single most important piece of engineering of the nineteenth century, maybe the most important in all American history and the story of how it came to be is just as extraordinary. While not an easy read (it took much longer than usual for me to read), by the end, I almost felt like I had witnessed the building of the railroad first hand. It has a healthy mix of technical statistics, human emotion, and even so...more
Really enjoyed this one. Perhaps it was partly living in Sacramento which was the Western terminus of the RR and the Pony Express before that. (Mail, etc. continued on to San Francisco by boat on the Sacramento River.)
Perhaps it was often seeing the particularly difficult construction spot of Cape Horn off on the mountain side as we drove up to ski.
Perhaps it was the legacy of the California State Railroad Museum (a state park).
At any rate, after reading it, ...more
Perhaps it was often seeing the particularly difficult construction spot of Cape Horn off on the mountain side as we drove up to ski.
Perhaps it was the legacy of the California State Railroad Museum (a state park).
At any rate, after reading it, ...more
I've always been a sucker for trains and I love history too. Stephen Ambrose knows how to tell a good story. My wife and I took a train route out west a number of years ago and passed through many of the places of note mentioned here. I'd like to do so again after becoming even more familiar with the incredible history of the railroad's construction. As is usually the case, the real heroes were the average, nameless laborers—especially the Chinese—who risked life and limb. Just about all of the ...more
Good solid book by Ambrose, which is not surprising. There are some really good references on some of the names of the towns and places along the railroad. Of course most to all are named after the people that worked on it... There were a tad long parts to it, but otherwise a good book if you like history and are interested in the railroad. Because of this railroad being built this pretty much sealed the fait of the Indians in that America would spread out across the country to settle land. ...more
Really great story, well told. I couldn't put it down.
A great antidote for those who believe that our times are uniquely corrupt. The engineers and surveyors and foremen and workers are the heroes of this tale. The politicians and the businessmen -- most often the same crew -- are the villains. Even them Ambrose treats mostly with kindness. The progess across the Sierra, engineers and chinese laborers against the mountain and the snow, is spectacular. The personalities of Dod...more
A great antidote for those who believe that our times are uniquely corrupt. The engineers and surveyors and foremen and workers are the heroes of this tale. The politicians and the businessmen -- most often the same crew -- are the villains. Even them Ambrose treats mostly with kindness. The progess across the Sierra, engineers and chinese laborers against the mountain and the snow, is spectacular. The personalities of Dod...more
Typical Ambrose.
Interesting discussion and description of the financing and land-grant provisions backing the construction of the railroad. I particularly liked reading about the cut-and-fill, tunneling, and problems associated with winter construction especially in the Sierras. Brigham Young plays an interesting albeit brief roll in the construction of the railroad through Utah.
Too bad that there isn't more known about the Chinese workers. Ambrose makes the point tha...more
Interesting discussion and description of the financing and land-grant provisions backing the construction of the railroad. I particularly liked reading about the cut-and-fill, tunneling, and problems associated with winter construction especially in the Sierras. Brigham Young plays an interesting albeit brief roll in the construction of the railroad through Utah.
Too bad that there isn't more known about the Chinese workers. Ambrose makes the point tha...more
The terminus of a lengthy train kick for me. I've read other books by Ambrose, but this one was a long slog. If his objective was to make the reader vicariously experience the arduous building of the transcontinental railroad then he succeeded. The interlocking stories of the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific Railroads are well stocked with admirable heroes such as Theodore Judah (with whom I share a birthdate) and Grenville Dodge, as well as detestable villains like the Big Four and Doc Dur...more
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It took me a couple of months to read 80% of this book and about another year to finish it. I'm amazaed at Stephen Ambrose's research and rich descriptions of the scenes that he depicts. It's almost as if I can see and hear the rails being laid as he describes it in the book.
One of the most fascinating points that Ambrose makes is that before the railroad was utilized, the means of transportation were the same for nearly two thousand years, relying only on animals to close any dist...more
One of the most fascinating points that Ambrose makes is that before the railroad was utilized, the means of transportation were the same for nearly two thousand years, relying only on animals to close any dist...more
Subtitled (incorrectly) "The Men Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad 1863-1869", I knew I was taking a risk reading an Ambrose book, but the subject was compelling to me. I like trains, I like history, particularly 19th Century American History, so I figured I would give this a try.
Not one of my better plans.
It's pretty bad when the 20 minute animated Peanuts special on the same subject is more critical of the subject material than a book for adults. But s...more
Not one of my better plans.
It's pretty bad when the 20 minute animated Peanuts special on the same subject is more critical of the subject material than a book for adults. But s...more
An exhaustive account of the building of the Intercontinental Railroad. Ambrose covers the full gamut, from the shady characters that financed the whole venture (including those that rose to prominence as a result) to the suffering of the Chinese-Americans that pounded through the California mountains to make the railroad a reality. Again, Ambrose has a gift for storytelling that is unparalleled. And this time, there is no recycling involved because this is an entirely new subject for him.
Matthew
rated it
Recommends it for:
History readers, Jim Heywood if he were still alive, and guys
Recommended to Matthew by:
Ross B. Nelson
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An incredible story. Ambrose compelling put it in the context of the times to convey how momentous an achievement this was. Dozens of characters were described in detail, making it a little hard to keep track, but that illustrates the political complexity involved, and the vast number of people required. He makes the case that people of this era lived through the most dramatic change in their lifetime. I wouldn't have believed that, compared with our era, until I read this book.
More than I ever wanted to know about building the transcontinental railroad, but it's quite a story...certainly changed the history of this country. I needed to scan some of the endless detail: the telegraph communications, quantities of black powder and nitroglycerin, and specific costs of construction. Some judicious editing was called for, but the monumental efforts and determination triumphed all. Too bad Americans don't have the same commitment to the rails today.
I'm not a great reader of non-fiction, though I wish I was -- I find them difficult to get through, and read them an a pace that is almost painful to me.
I'd like to say this book was an exception - it wasn't, BUT it was a fantastic book. Sure, it drags at times and the details are DETAILED, but it is a fascinating and fantastic look at the making of the transcontinental railroad and how it affected everyone, from the idealists, to the financiers, to the Native Americans, to the Irish...more
I'd like to say this book was an exception - it wasn't, BUT it was a fantastic book. Sure, it drags at times and the details are DETAILED, but it is a fascinating and fantastic look at the making of the transcontinental railroad and how it affected everyone, from the idealists, to the financiers, to the Native Americans, to the Irish...more
I enjoyed it, especially the reaction to and about the Chinese workers. We owe them a lot, and oddly enough I have never heard any of their ancestors scream for money. One thing that stands out to me the most is the absolute and total willingness on the part of some of the american ivestors (Hunington esp) to do or risk absolutley anything for MONEY. Prestige comes in second. I wonder what the next "railroad" will be for us as a nation. Overall a good read.
A lot of the reviewers are pretty harsh. I confess I labored to finish because of the tedium of the author chronicling land negotiations, but there where enough interesting anecdotes like the fact Lincoln was advocating building trains without having seen one to keep me reading. Aside from the pedantic writing and perhaps the poor scholarship (I am not sure about this), the book is nowhere near up to Ambrose’s Lewis and Clark. Still—worth the read.
Quite Possibly one of the most boring reads ever! Repetitious at times and often inserted with out-of-sequenc information. After I reached 3/4 of the way I simply gave-up. At this point I figured he couldn't possibly give me any new information that wasn't already mentioned several times.
I get it! Building the railroad was tuff work. Let's not make reading about it equally tuff by dragging it out. Ambrose seemed as if he was bored writing about it at times. This is evident when ent...more
I get it! Building the railroad was tuff work. Let's not make reading about it equally tuff by dragging it out. Ambrose seemed as if he was bored writing about it at times. This is evident when ent...more
Listened to this on audiobooks over a number of car trips. It's a massive book. I was fascinated and learned a lot about California's original robber barons: Huntington, Crocker, Mark Hopkins, Stanford.
It was also really interesting to note the history of the political process that led to the founding of the two great railroad lines--and the role Congress played in shaping the routes, doling out land grants, etc.
It was also really interesting to note the history of the political process that led to the founding of the two great railroad lines--and the role Congress played in shaping the routes, doling out land grants, etc.
I became interested in Stephen Ambrose through his writing about WWII. Because I enjoyed all of his books so much I decided to read Undaunted Courage, which is about the Louis and Clark expedition, and loved it. Then, I wondered it this book might be the same. NO WAY! HATED IT! I tried and tried to stick with it, shocked that Ambrose could turn out such boring garbage, but I wasn't even able to finish it.
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Stephen Edward Ambrose was an American historian and biographer of U.S. Presidents Dwight Eisenhower and Richard M. Nixon. He received his Ph.D. in 1960 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
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