For years, the people of Baltimore had to content themselves with the long, winding route through New York, Albany, Syracuse and Buffalo to get themselves to the fabled city of Pittsburgh, where steel grew on trees. But in 1834, the Baltimore & Ohio Rail Company, my company, finally had the funds to embark on an audacious project: a really big tunnel.
Broadly covering the first century of North American railway expansion, Railway Empire is a battle against geography. Huge mountain ranges and serpentine rivers ensure that flat ground is highly coveted, but if you ve got enough cash in your bank account, then even the Alleghenies can be conquered.