Last Train to Paradise Quotes

“watched the flash of guardrails, saw”
― Les Standiford, Last Train to Paradise: Henry Flagler and the Spectacular Rise and Fall of the Railroad that Crossed an Ocean

“You don't seem to care to talk about yourself," [Lefevre] said to Flagler.
"I prefer to let what I have done speak for me," Flagler replied.
"By their works ye shall know them," Lefevre suggested.
"Yes, that's it," Flagler said - as eagerly as he had said anything, according to his interviewer.”
― Les Standiford, Last Train to Paradise: Henry Flagler and the Spectacular Rise and Fall of the Railroad that Crossed an Ocean

“The train’s conductor, J. F. Gamble, flung himself into the cab, his uniform soaked and dripping, to report the worst: one of the hundred-ton boxcars at the rear of the train had been toppled by the wind and waves, automatically locking the air brakes on the entire chain.”
― Les Standiford, Last Train to Paradise: Henry Flagler and the Spectacular Rise and Fall of the Railroad that Crossed an Ocean

“One worker housed in Camp No. 10 on Key Vaca was overheard to say, “Building this railroad has become a regular marathon.” The remark struck a chord in his fellow workers, who dubbed their camp “Marathon,” the name by which the nearby town, the second-largest in the Keys, is known today.”
― Les Standiford, Last Train to Paradise: Henry Flagler and the Spectacular Rise and Fall of the Railroad that Crossed an Ocean

“Permanent construction of the sort Flagler was referring to would not come cheaply, however. Early in 1910, Flagler wrote to John Carrere, designer of the Ponce de Leon Hotel in St. Augustine, that repairing the damage caused by the hurricane had actually cost him $1 million, and reiterated that it had taught him a valuable lesson about upgrading the quality of the work. He estimated that it would require at least another $9 million to push the track to Key West, a figure that did not include the costs of a terminal and docking facilities.”
― Les Standiford, Last Train to Paradise: Henry Flagler and the Spectacular Rise and Fall of the Railroad that Crossed an Ocean