Follow the evolution of the sound of a train's horn - here, there, and everywhere.
World War II was over and railroads were retiring war-weary steam locomotives in favor of shiny new diesel locomotives. Deane Ellsworth, a young train-crazy lad at the time, wondered if anyone anywhere cared about the steam locomotives' musical train whistles being replaced by the monotone horns. Indeed, a public accustomed to the melodious sounds of steam whistles registered concerns about these new horns as a growing source of noise, confusion, and accidents.
As it happened, Ellsworth would go on to develop the K5LA and K3LA airhorns that are used on thousands of locomotives across North America today. In Making Trains Sound Like Trains, he relates the compelling tale - part history, part personal story - of the evolution of the train horn from the postwar period to today. Along the way, readers meet the colorful characters who found themselves involved in the story: loggers, poets, railroaders, industrialists, musicians, and more.
Told for the first time, this detailed account combines an entertaining narrative, current and historical photography, and more than eighty field recordings. Railfans, historians, collectors, musicians, and those who smile at the sound of a distant train will not want to miss this book!
