{"product_id":"life-along-the-tracks-candid-stories-from-a-career-railroader-9781638640301","title":"Life Along the Tracks: Candid Stories from a Career Railroader","description":"\u003cp\u003eAs a boy in the early 1950s, Mike McLaughlin was a regular stowaway riding switch engines back and forth in Seattle, Washington. By the time he was in high school, he was hand-firing steam engines as an unofficial crew member. Obsessed with trains and destined for a life along the tracks, he started by digging ditches as a gandy and ended as a railroad and transportation consultant, but he never completely relinquished his shovel. His career spanned multiple railroads, including Great Northern, Denver \u0026amp; Rio Grande Western, and Chicago, Rock Island \u0026amp; Pacific, as well as transportation management for several large industrial firms.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith McLaughlin, even the mundane becomes fascinating. Unlike those of an executive or engineer, his personal accounts focus on what went on behind the scenes--from the finer points of using a shovel to suddenly having to reroute 16,000 tons of talc ore from Montana to a ship in Portland. He describes living and working as part of maintenance and signal gangs, moving days on several lines, supervisory issues, and more. His collection of mid-20th century timetables and other paper ephemera provide minute detail related to railroad activities and communications. Numerous photographs and Dave Clemens' hand-drawn maps enhance the text, illustrate where stories take place, and promote a deeper understanding of some gritty, intense railroading.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Basalt Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50899257786642,"sku":"9781638640301","price":32.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_4d7d3763-7890-4fcd-96f9-0936c24d1f51.jpg?v=1738349592","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/life-along-the-tracks-candid-stories-from-a-career-railroader-9781638640301","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}