Picked this audio on sale shortly after visiting James J Hill's house in Minnesota. I knew about the early days of the railroads, and this book picks up following the death of Vanderbilt. Hill is in here, but the bulk of the book revolves around Harriman. Learned some stuff. Good book, not great. Will search out other books about this time in history.

Although I've read about the railroad builders, the bribery, the abuses, and how even through greed and incompetence, railroads were still pivotal in opening the West, what I found interesting in this book is the follow through as the 19th century ended and the 20th century began. I wasn't as familiar with that part of the history and found it quite interesting. Mr. Hiltzik covers the railroad's history well as to how it's entwined with financial dealings. He shows the development warts and all. I've developed a new interest and respect for Harriman, a name I didn't recognize like those more familiar ones such as Vanderbilt, Fisk, Gould, and Morgan. Perhaps because Mr. Hiltzik's intent is to keep this factual, as colorful as some of these bigger than life robber barons seemed, this book did not go into actual character studies even though the chapters seemed organized by the different individuals and/or pivotal events. As such, it did not engage me as much as I expected. My rating is 3 stars because of this.

A very thorough history of the development of the US railroad system in the 1800’s. It focuses on the outsized personalities and their internecine business battles that comprised two distinct generations. It’s a very solid historical work giving a good sense of the time and the characters. The overall arc is that the founding mavericks of the industry in the earlier part of the century gave way at the end to more mature bankers and syndicates who could better manage and ruthlessly consolidate the industry. It also touches quite a bit on the major economic, social, and political milestones, especially in the latter half as the railroads were a dominant player in the social fabric at the time.

A few years ago there was a middling series called “Hell on Wheels” which had the feel of this time, but this book would form the basis of a much better series, albeit with a resemblance more to “Boardwalk Empire” than Wheels with the personalities involved.

The birth and growth of railroads in america was a tumultuous time. Iron Empires presents an interesting look at the rise of four key railroad robber barons and the empires they built. As much a history of Wall Street as a history of the railroads. The emphasis here is on the ownership struggles and the personalities rather than the details of how the specifics of the railroads involved. There is much here to contemplate in the context of our economic challenges and debate about the roll of concentrated wealth and Wall St, power on the rest of the country.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is interesting. It's not a quick read because there's a lot of info tightly packed into it. I wouldn't go as far as saying it should be required reading, but it is interesting info that is important to the history of the US, and thus seems like more people should know at least some of our story as it relates to our rail lines and how vital they are/were to our everyday lives. Most history buffs will likely enjoy this.

I really appreciate the ARC for review!!