Transport Curiosities, 1850–1950: Weird and Wonderful Ways of Travelling by Road, Rail, Air and Sea

Description

Over the years many weird and wonderful types of transport have come and gone, some of which succeeded against all odds, others that spectacularly failed, and some that never got beyond a designer’s drawing board. Railway engines driven by horses, for example. Or maybe the surprising number of cars, boats and trains driven by airplane propellers. In this book you will find cars that flew, cars that floated on water and boats that ran on roads; steam-powered airplanes, electric submarines, railways driven by pneumatic air, aircraft with flapping wings…and a whole lot more. If you are a person who would like to have flown in an airship, or traveled in a train whose carriage sat on stilts above the sea with its tracks below the water, or dreamed of riding on a London to New York railway that took twelve days to travel the long way around the world, or maybe just fancied fixing your bicycle to a railway track, then this book is for you. Cover Book Title Copyright Contents Introduction Part I Travel on Tracks Trains with Propellers Pneumatic and Atmospheric Railways The Pioneering Journeys of Daddy Long-Legs Impossible Journeys New York’s Lost Railways Pedal Power, Horse Power, Railcars and More Part II Travel by Land Electric Cars and Buses The Power of Pedals Unusual Petrol, Steam and Wind Power Vehicles Part III Travel Over and Under Water Floating Giants Electric Submarines Snow and Ice Boats More Strange Craft Part IV Travel by Air The Age of the Airship The Ups and Downs of Early Flight The Shape of Planes to Come Index