Nestled amongst the sage-covered; windswept hills of California�s Eastern Sierra is the site of one of the most notorious mining towns of the Old West. In 1859; gold was discovered in the treeless hills northeast of Mono Lake. By 1879; Bodie was a metropolis of nearly 10;000 souls and was briefly the third-largest city in California. Excitement was short-lived; however; and word soon spread that the mines had reached peak production. An exodus began; but contrary to popular belief; Bodie was never totally abandoned. People continued living in this curious and beautiful place throughout the 1950s; and in 1962; the California State Parks system purchased the town site. Now stabilized against the elements; Bodie is today known as the largest unrestored ghost town in the West.
#1811881 in eBooks 2006-08-30 2006-08-30File Name: B009A68SU4
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. More for fans of rail than fans of old JohnstownBy HHReaders interested in old Johnstown surely will find things to love in this book. But do not be misled: this is a pictorial history of RAIL in Johnstown. not of Johnstown itself. Indeed. the many pictures focus on the types of railway transportation used in Johnstown during the past two centuries -- streetcars. trolleys. the Inclined Plane. and even city buses. Readers looking for a history of Johnstown itself would do better to pick up a copy of Jobe Hendersons Images of America entry on the city.Springriths presentation of rail history in Johnstown is excellent. He devotes the perfect amount of space to the Johnstown incline and its well-known role in transporting residents to high ground in the devastating floods of 1936 and 1977. while informing us more about the importance of streetcars and trolleys. (Unfortunately. nowadays the incline has been relegated to a tourist attraction.) Springriths history is admirably thorough. but perhaps thorough to a fault. For example. one might ask: Was it really necessary to include a final chapter on the Cambria County Transit Authority? Pictures of modern-day public buses heading to Oakhurst and Moxham do little but remind us how bad those areas have become. These buses place in transportation history is so unremarkable that they can be usefully (rightly?) skipped over.4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. My hometown system.By Richard A. ClarkI thoroughly enjoyed the pictures of the streetcars and the Incline Plane Railway from my hometown of Johnstown PA. Growing up there in the last days of the streetcar system I felt like I had lost many good friends when they were discontinued. I also met Mr. Springirth on several occasions during this time. Theodore Burkett0 of 1 people found the following review helpful. My wife came from Johnstown and actually remembers riding on ...By KARL SPENCEMy wife came from Johnstown and actually remembers riding on specific numbered streetcars . Loads of photos and an interesting coverage of the line which was one of the last streetcar systems in Pennsylvania.
