Review of "Rails To The Blue Ridge" in the January 2001 issue of TRAINS magazine

In 1963, historian (and frequent TRAINS contributor) Herbert H. Harwood, Jr. published his "Rails to the Blue Ridge," a definitive history of the Washington & Old Dominion Railroad.  A second edition followed in 1970 and then the book slipped quietly out of print.  Time passed, and eventually the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority developed a 45-mile recreational trail on the former W&OD roadbed.  In a happy turn of events, the authority approached Harwood with an offer to reprint his history of the line.  The result is this rewritten, updated, and greatly expanded third edition.

The W&OD was founded in 1847 and lasted, under various names, until 1968. In 1912, the 72 mile railroad had the distinction of being Virginia's largest interurban system, operating a 52-mile line from Washington, D.C., to the community of Bluemont in Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains, as well as a line between Washington and Great Falls on the Potomac River.  Harwood, a gifted writer, makes the most of the Old Dominion's extremely colorful history, but "Rails to the Blue Ridge" is much more than anecdotes and photos-it is a complete and well-researched history, and it is encouraging to see this valuable resource back in
print.-C.S.