R.A. Scotti
Conquering Gotham evokes a forgotten time when the only Hudson crossing was by ferry. Lives, reputations and fortunes were lost in the seemingly impossible enterprise of tunneling beneath the river and erecting a monumental railroad terminus in Manhattan. (R.A. Scotti, author of Basilica: The Splendor and the Scandal, Building St. Peter's)
Lorraine B. Diehl
An immensely readable, meticulously researched account of the PRR's turn-of-the-century efforts to deliver its passengers into Manhattan. In telling the dramatic story of the construction of the PRR's Hudson and East River tunnels, Jonnes brings readers face-to-face with the project's constant dangers and extraordinary complexities. We also get to witness the generous heart and keen mind of Alexander Cassatt, the railroad's president, whose dream to conquer Gotham eventually cost him his life. (Lorraine B. Diehl, author of The Late, Great Pennsylvania Station)
From the Publisher
"A human account of how a few visionaries from the Pennsylvania Railroad connected the rest of the country to the nation's greatest port, and how their Philadelphia-centric perspective doomed the world's largest train station."
-Sam Roberts, The New York Times
"Lush and lovely prose."
-The Baltimore Sun
"In the tradition of David McCullough's narrative of the Brooklyn Bridge . . . intelligent history about building an indispensable part of our infrastructure."
-Kirkus Reviews (starred review)