How We Got to Coney Island: The Development of Mass Transportation in Brooklyn and Kings County

Rating:
Summary: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know
Review: Did you ever sit down with an elderly relative who is in a chatty mood, and suddenly realize how ignorant you were about your own family history? Finally learning how a particular "aunt", whom you've heard about a million times, is related to you? That's what reading Cudahy's book about the development of mass transit on Coney Island is like.
For example, I'd taken the "Culver" train many times without realizing that the destination had no street are area by that name, and only learned from this book that Andrew Culver developed one of the original rail lines across Brooklyn.
If you're a current or former Brooklynite, there are many "aha!" moments in this book, and a great explanation of how the development of Coney Island for recreation is what led to the development of mass transit across the borough.
This is a "niche" book, for those interested in Brooklyn history and for those interested in trains, and if you are looking for human interest, i.e., for a book about how the waves of immigrants have changed Brooklyn many times over, you should look elsewhere. The only people this book focuses on are the industrialists who left their imprint on Brooklyn by developing and redeveloping its transportation. It does that amazingly well. Make sure you really do want to hear these old stories.

Rating:
Summary: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know
Review: Did you ever sit down with an elderly relative who is in a chatty mood, and suddenly realize how ignorant you were about your own family history? Finally learning how a particular "aunt", whom you've heard about a million times, is related to you? That's what reading Cudahy's book about the development of mass transit on Coney Island is like.
For example, I'd taken the "Culver" train many times without realizing that the destination had no street are area by that name, and only learned from this book that Andrew Culver developed one of the original rail lines across Brooklyn.
If you're a current or former Brooklynite, there are many "aha!" moments in this book, and a great explanation of how the development of Coney Island for recreation is what led to the development of mass transit across the borough.
This is a "niche" book, for those interested in Brooklyn history and for those interested in trains, and if you are looking for human interest, i.e., for a book about how the waves of immigrants have changed Brooklyn many times over, you should look elsewhere. The only people this book focuses on are the industrialists who left their imprint on Brooklyn by developing and redeveloping its transportation. It does that amazingly well. Make sure you really do want to hear these old stories.