The Pennsylvania Railroad

This is a monumental work of scholarship. It is big—fifteen chapters, an introduction, notes, and an index total 945, 8.5 x 11 inch pages, and it weighs 6.5 pounds. The research into both primary and secondary sources is staggering—the notes alone are worth reading. The first eleven chapters are largely chronological, focusing on the building of the Pennsylvania Railroad system; the work then becomes more topical. Chapter 13 focuses mostly on technological improvements, and 14 is on regulation, including the efforts to create a community of interest. The last chapter brings the company into Union Station in Washington, D.C., New York's Penn Station, and connections with New England. The Pennsylvania was once the largest corporation in the world. Although there is a vast literature on the company, no complete history has been written since its centennial in 1949. Albert J. Churella's work is gracefully written and authoritative. It compares favorably with other recent corporate histories such as Maury Klein's three volumes on the Union Pacific Railroad (1987, 1989, 2011). Loosely following the work of Alfred Chandler, the author weaves together the company's changing corporate strategies and structure in compelling fashion. His depiction of the evolution of the railroad from a mercantilist venture of Philadelphia businessmen to a profit-seeking corporation, while not novel, is nicely done. In discussing the construction of a community of interest in the late nineteenth century, he stresses the role of the Pennsylvania and especially its president, Alexander J. Cassatt (1899–1906), while deemphasizing the role of J. P. Morgan and the bankers.