Rails Around Houston

by Weiskopf, Douglas L.

• ISBN13: 9780738558844
• ISBN10: 0738558842
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-05-25
• Publisher: Arcadia Pub

Summary

Several railroads were chartered by the Republic of Texas, but the first line built was the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos and Colorado, which began construction near the Port of Houston Turning Basin in 1851. The BBB&C would become the oldest segment of the country’s first transcontinental railroad under sole ownership: the Southern Pacific’s Sunset Route, connecting New Orleans and Los Angeles and completed in 1883. By the time oil was discovered near Beaumont in 1901, Houston was such a transportation hub that it became the heart of the petrochemical industry. Houston saw narrow-gauge lines, two interurban lines, light rail, and even a monorail. For many years, the chamber of commerce proudly proclaimed that Houston was the place where seventeen railroads meet the sea.” More than 30 beautiful trains with names like Sunset Limited, Sunbeam, Sam Houston Zephyr, Twin Star Rocket, Bluebonnet, Texas Rocket, and Texas Chief would serve three depots.

Author Biography

Douglas L. Weiskopf, native Houstonian and lifelong railroad history buff, has authored several articles on Houston railroading. He is the chapter historian of the Gulf Coast Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society and worked for over 20 years as senior library services specialist in the Houston Public Library's Texas Room. The Images of Rail series celebrates the history of rail, trolley, streetcar, and subway transportation across the country. Using archival photographs, each title presents the people, places, and events that helped revolutionize transportation and commerce in 19th- and 20th-century America. Arcadia is proud to play a part in the preservation of local heritage, making history available to all.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. 6
Introduction	p. 7
Beginnings	p. 11
The Sunset Route	p. 27
Other Major Lines	p. 49
Short Lines, Streetcars, and Interurbans	p. 71
Passenger Operations	p. 97
Bibliography	p. 126
Index	p. 127
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