O. & W.: The Long Life and Slow Death of the New York, Ontario and Western Railway

O. & W.: The Long Life and Slow Death of the New York, Ontario and Western Railway

The Ontario & Western—the O&W, or, as both boosters and detractors referred to it in its later years, the "Old & Weary," operated from 1869-1957 and ran from Oswego on Lake Ontario to New York City, passing through the midlands and southern counties of New York State, with spurs to Utica, Kingston, Port Jervis, and Scranton, PA. Filled with colorful characters and miscellaneous machinery, O. & W. chronicles almost a century of alternating hope and heartache, prosperity and poverty, dignity and degradation. Her passing was mourned for a variety of economic and sentimental reasons, but the loss was deeply felt in an intangible way. The rambling, elderly, inefficient, accident-prone, irritating old railroad was a part of a way of life now gone from the American scene. 140 photographs, maps, illustrations, ephemera, and rosters Considered a classic in the field of railroad lore. -- Times Herald Record, June 2000 It is a pleasure to see a splendid book back in print and at a bargain price. -- Railroad History, No. 184 Professor Helmer's work is deserving of the widest possible circulation, for he has written not of the O&W alone... -- Trains Magazine Professor Helmer's work is deserving of the widest possible circulation. -- Trains Magazine Rairoad buffs, for example, and those fascinated by the history of New York State, will find extended pleasure. -- New York Times, December 4, 1970 William F. Helmer is also the author of Rip Van Winkle Railroads (Black Dome Press: 1999). His railroad scholarship is backed by practical experience. For two years, he was vice-president of the Canastota & Cazenovia Railroad, which Mr. Helmer described as "an unsuccessful but spirited attempt to acquire and operate a lopped-off branch of the Lehigh Valley." He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, and was a professor of English and dean of liberal arts for many years at the State University Agricultural & Technical College at Morrisville, New York. Used Book in Good Condition