Conquering Gotham: A Gilded Age Epic: The Construction of Penn Station and Its Tunnels
Jill Jonnes, . . Viking, $27.95 (368pp) ISBN 978-0-670-03158-0
Modern Manhattan is a miracle in many ways, but all of its imports, commuters included, must traverse at least one river to get there. In 1900, the New York Central, owned by the Vanderbilts, already gave Manhattan a northern connection over the narrow Harlem River. A southern connection over the mile-wide Hudson would be a whole different story. Alexander Cassatt, president of the Pennsylvania Railroad, was the visionary on the project. But how to do it? A bridge plan fell through due to expense; a tunnel would lack the oxygen needed for steam engines. The breakthrough lay in the cutting-edge electrified locomotives developed in Paris. Historian Jonnes (
Reviewed on: 02/19/2007
Genre: Nonfiction
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