An Action-Packed Story of
Courage,
Determination and Will
The Little Train That Would Not Die
This
true story about the
indomitable
American spirit takes readers through two centuries and an array of
interesting characters, including innovative citizen and soldier
General William J. Palmer, legendary lawman Bat Masterson and singer
Gene Autry. It is a passionate tale of men who dared to dream big
despite long odds against them. They made the Cumbres &
Toltec Scenic Railroad, which runs from New Mexico to Colorado, a
living monument of hope to future generations. The book also details
the author's personal involvement in the restoration project along with
her family from the time she was a little girl. It is story railroad
buffs will thoroughly enjoy and anyone looking for inspiration will
certainly find plenty of it here. Packed with period photos, diagrams
and letters.
Antoinette Gibbons not only tells the fascinating story of how the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad was born. She actually lived through most of the modern adventure.
“As a 9 year old girl, I rode on the
Cumbres & Toltec when it first started out. By the time I was 14, I
was drummed into Engine 463’s “boiler maker corps” working alongside my
dad and three other guys, forever losing my heart to that little
engine. I remember the blisters and aching muscles, the heartache and
joy. It is my hope that a piece of that has been captured and this
train will go to future generations forever being, “The Little Train
That Would Not Die.”
The book brings the reader right into all
the action, adventure and passion that made these events truly
historical. You will get a glimpse into the lives of innovative citizen
and soldier, General William J Palmer, legendary lawman Bat Masterman
and even singer Gene Autry who all shared integral parts in this story
of courage over adversity. Plus you will learn about the author’s
family, friends and fellow advocates for the historic railroad that has
graced the mountains between Colorado and New Mexico since 1880.
It begins with an obscure but important
Indian battle high in the Colorado rockies, the “1848 Battle of Cumbres
Pass.” From there, readers will follow the steady but toilsome progress
as a great railroad was built to bring prosperity to this remote region
of America.
We are then brought into the 20th century,
when the heroic works of ordinary men accomplished the impossible in
the 1960’s and 1970’s. Antoinette’s dad, Bob Burggraaf said, “They were
the most enthusiastic, unbusiness-like fools that ever set foot in shoe
leather, but they got the job done.”
Gibbons was actively involved in the
restoration process. At 9 years old, she rode in an open car gondola
the first time they fired up Engine 483 under its new name as the
C&TS Railroad. She spent summers riding the rails, clearing sage
brush and playing in the high mountains of Colorado. Later, she worked
alongside men as a boilermaker apprentice, learning to weld, using a
cutting torch and drill and set rivets.
“I got paid a dollar an hour and the work didn’t last long, but for that moment I had a chance to touch and change history,” Gibbons writes.
Her own writing career began when she joined the Longmont writer’s Club in Longmount, Colorado in 1991. With an encouraging and nurturing community, she became the club’s president in two years. Gibbons has worked for the Berthoud Colorado Recorder and as a field interviewer and manager with the University of Michigan’s Social Research Institution. The creation of “The Little Train That Would Not Die” was five years in the making and a true labor of love.
“In 1994, I met Engine 463 again and found myself on a whole new journey of discovery, searching for both the triumphs and the tragedies that surrounded the years of the CT&S, resulting in this current book. My father died three years ago after the first publishing of a portion of the tsory. The rewriting of the story has helped me to find the heart behind the stories, the dreams, the disappointments and the truth of life.”
“I got paid a dollar an hour and the work didn’t last long, but for that moment I had a chance to touch and change history,” Gibbons writes.
Her own writing career began when she joined the Longmont writer’s Club in Longmount, Colorado in 1991. With an encouraging and nurturing community, she became the club’s president in two years. Gibbons has worked for the Berthoud Colorado Recorder and as a field interviewer and manager with the University of Michigan’s Social Research Institution. The creation of “The Little Train That Would Not Die” was five years in the making and a true labor of love.
“In 1994, I met Engine 463 again and found myself on a whole new journey of discovery, searching for both the triumphs and the tragedies that surrounded the years of the CT&S, resulting in this current book. My father died three years ago after the first publishing of a portion of the tsory. The rewriting of the story has helped me to find the heart behind the stories, the dreams, the disappointments and the truth of life.”
"This is
an extraordinary tale of dedication and hard work that succeeded
in preserving one of the most romantic and meaningful parts of the history
of the Mountain West.
It is a saga of culture and society of early western America that, with almost
unbelievable courage and toil, opened the high mountain country of Colorado
and New Mexico to commerce, using the Narrow Guage Railroads.
It is also a modern story of how a fine group of conservationists and railroad
buffs contended against all odds to preserve and operate the Cumbres and
Toltec Scenic Railroad as history and a wonderful touring experience
to thousands in the future."
Governor John A. Love, First Chairman, Colorado Railroad Authority
in preserving one of the most romantic and meaningful parts of the history
of the Mountain West.
It is a saga of culture and society of early western America that, with almost
unbelievable courage and toil, opened the high mountain country of Colorado
and New Mexico to commerce, using the Narrow Guage Railroads.
It is also a modern story of how a fine group of conservationists and railroad
buffs contended against all odds to preserve and operate the Cumbres and
Toltec Scenic Railroad as history and a wonderful touring experience
to thousands in the future."
Governor John A. Love, First Chairman, Colorado Railroad Authority
Quality
Trade Paperback: $16.95
Quality Dust Jacket Hardcover: $27.50
Quality Dust Jacket Hardcover: $27.50
You can order a copy of “The Little
Train That Would Die”
through Authorhouse at their book order
hotline, 1-888-280-7715,
or on the web at http://www.authorhouse.com
It is also available through Ingram’s Books in Print Database.
or on the web at http://www.authorhouse.com
It is also available through Ingram’s Books in Print Database.