The North Western: A History of the Chicago & North Western Railway System (Railroads in America) Hardcover – December 4, 1996

Covers the entire lifespan of the CN&W. Somewhat light on operational details, but a good overview of the growth and fall of the system.

Another excellent work by a railroad historian. One cannot have enough works on the shelf to study your favorite lines.

A good look at the history of the Rock Island Railroad

Definitive book on this once great railroad. Very well written with detailed black and white photographs and illustrations. Nice high quality hardcover binding.

This is undoubtedly the best book on the history of the CNW I have ever read - if not the best railroading book altogether. It is complete and thorough, from the railroad's inception to merger with the Union Pacific. It is a bit dense, but I've read it in its entirety. Focuses more on the corporate side of the CNW, is a bit short on locomotive rosters and track maps, although it does have lots of B & W photographs. Definitely recommended.

This publication covers the complete history of the Chicago & North Western Railway from the initial charter of the Galena & Chicago Union Railroad in 1836 through the final years before the C&NW was absorbed by the Union Pacific in 1995. This work is one that a reader will come away having learned the evolution of the former C&NW and the reasons for its prominence in railroad history. It is a must have reference text for any fan of Midwest rails.Professor Grant has included numerous illustrations and b&w photographs from his personal collection and from others that have been crisply reproduced and concisely captioned. The generous footnotes and ample bibliography provided are illuminating and will offer any student of Midwest rail history an excellent starting point for a research endeavor of their own.

My comments will be brief, as the fine review already provided by James Heidel is accurate and complete. I intend only to convince any of those who are unsure of buying this book that this really is a great value. Simply excellent writing combined with ample information has resulted in the best book I have read about railroading.

It gave a concise history of the company including information on the efforts of the North western to become a transcontinental reaching the Pacific. I wish there had been more hard information on why they failed to make the move. Other sources provided insights on their moves in that direction, but I felt this book could have given more insight into the decision to terminate the effort.

excellent