The Great Northern Railway was among America's most distinctive and noteworthy railroads. Though its most spectacular scenery was in the western half of the line, called Lines West, there was a very busy network of trackage, and considerably more traffic, in the Lines East, essentially including the states of North and South Dakota, Minnesota, and extensions into Wisconsin, Iowa, and Manitoba.

This book presents the history, operational characteristics, and equipment which lay at the heart of GN Lines East, with an emphasis on the latter 40 years of Great Northern's history. Both passenger and freight operations were complex and interesting, as was the motive power. An extensive photographic presentation of steam and diesel locomotives, along with passenger and freight equipment, is at the heart of this edition.

This book, the first edition of which was published in 1989, is a companion to Charles R. Wood's Great Northern Lines West. But this new edition contains far more than did the first edition. Photographic reproduction is greatly improved with better paper and printing. The text has been revised, corrected and expanded where needed, and the book is now 70 pages longer. Also, the book now contains an outstanding collection of 621 photographs (54 of them in color); fully 231 of the photos here are new or enlarged from the previous versions.

The most distinctive addition to the book is an entirely new chapter on Great Northern freight equipment, by experts Richard H. Hendrickson and Staffan Ehnbom. Starting about 1910 and extending to 1970, coverage is included for all types of freight cars. This chapter alone contains 142 new photos, along with a few from the previous edition. There is no comparable resource anywhere for detailed coverage of GN freight cars over this span of time.

Author Patrick Dorin has 15 previous railroad books to his credit; he welcomed the chance to improve and expand this one. Noted railroad artist J. Craig Thorpe has created a painting of the Stone Arch Bridge between Minneapolis and St. Paul to enhance the dust jacket. This new edition is a fitting companion to Great Northern Lines West and completes the detailed story of the Great Northern Railway.

Size: 304 pages, 8.5" x 11", 621 photographs (54 color)