Unfinished Business: The Railroad in American Life

by Maury Klein

"Sooner or later every age finds a symbol which best expresses the essence of its character to later generations," writes Maury Klein, who has spent nearly three decades tracing the evolution and impact of the American railroad industry. "The coming of the railroad swept all rival forms of land transportation from its path . . . Within half a century, the rail system became the lifeline of an industrial society, a network of steel tentacles pushing into every corner of the Republic." Unfinished Business combines Klein's most influential articles with new essays to tell the story of America's developing railroad industry and the men who dominated it.

248 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Maury Klein is renowned as one of the finest historians of American business and economy. He is the author of many books, including The Power Makers: Steam, Electricity, and the Men Who Invented Modern America; and Rainbow's End: The Crash of 1929. He is Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Rhode Island. He lives in Saunderstown, Rhode Island.