PULLMAN, Wash. — Jim Fredrickson, the “kid with a camera,” returns with his third railroad book, “Railscapes: A Northern Pacific Brasspounder’s Album.” Covering six decades of American railroading, the new book includes hundreds more of the author’s photographs, along with detailed accounts.
Fredrickson’s writing is peppered with railroad terminology, an insider’s insights and unbounded enthusiasm for the whole world of trains. The volume features sections on train wrecks, premier passenger trains, the last of the steam engines, the railroading community and even a brush with death:
“April 22, 1952…was my day off, but I wanted to make a trip over part of my territory…It was customary to ride the engine on ‘student trips’ to get the best possible view of the territory. However, the train was just departing as I arrived, so I had to settle for catching the caboose. No problem, I thought. I would move up to the engine when we stopped to pick up cars at Snohomish. But, abnormally, there was no pick-up at Snohomish that time. So, okay, I thought, I’ll get on the engine at Woodinville. But, as we arrived there, I was in the midst of a lengthy conversation… and, first thing I knew, it was time to depart and I was obliged to remain on the caboose. It seems as though some invisible force was keeping me off the engine. Our next stop was sudden and severe. We ran into the rear end of the ‘Woolley’ local.”
Fredrickson, a long-time employee of the Northern Pacific Railway, is a noted regional photographer and railroad expert who has compiled an unparalleled collection of pictures and historical memorabilia about Northwest rail lines and trains. He is the author of two previous books published by WSU Press, “Railroad Shutterbug” and “Steam to Diesel.”
“Railscapes” is 10 ½ inches by 9 inches and 160 pages. The hardbound version retails for $45 and the paperback version is listed at $29.95. It is available at bookstores or can be ordered directly, plus shipping, from WSU Press by calling (800) 354-7360 or online at www.wsupress.wsu.edu.
WSU Press, located in Pullman, is associated with the university and publishes scholarly books with a cultural or historical relationship to the Pacific Northwest.
Readings & Book Signings
Nov. 8 at 2 p.m.
Fredrickson will speak and sign copies of his book at the Snow Goose Bookstore, 8616 271st St. N.W., in Stanwood.
Nov. 29 from 1-3 p.m.
Fredrickson will speak and sign copies of his book at the Pacific County Historical Society Museum in South Bend.
