Did you know that Greene County in Indiana has one of the longest land-crossing railroad trestles in the Midwest? Are you aware that the Southern Railway once used half of the railroad tunnels in the state? Indiana's first railroad, built in Shelbyville, was only a mile long, but in 1847, completion of a major steam railroad from Madison to Indianapolis made the state's capital a center of transportation. Unlike canals, railroads could be built just about anywhere. Southern Indiana's quickly growing network of rail lines was able to haul tons of goods at low cost, and enabled settlers to travel great distances in a single day. Railroad Depots of Southern Indiana takes the reader on a journey through the towns and cities that shape Indiana's railroad lore. Images depict regional rail history from the inner workings of now demolished depots to one of the oldest "short lines" in Indiana. Through more than 200 vintage photographs, author David E. Longest documents locomotives, rail equipment, the moving of stock, depots, rail stations, and freight houses, and finishes with a tour of the rail museums and excursions that still allow tourists and aficionados to "ride the rails."

Through photographs of depots, freight houses, and other railroad structures, long demolished yet an integral part of community development, "Railroad Depots of Northern Indiana" reviews the history of the cities and towns that used the rail to transport raw materials and finished manufactured products across the state.

In the spring of 1847, James Brooks met with six associates in Providence to forever change the face of transportation in Indiana. The New Albany and Salem Rail Road Company was born as a result of this historic meeting. Today this railroad, most often called the Monon, is only a memory of a time when trains streaked across the hills and farmland of southern Indiana. The Monon Railroad in Southern Indiana examines the real purpose of railroads as movers of people and the products they devoted their lives to producing and focuses on areas from New Albany to Bloomington. It identifies the only two counties in Indiana that were a part of the Salem limestone district and gives a glimpse of how the stone was removed from the earth and eventually formed into some of the nation's most beloved buildings and structures. It also takes a look at the history of several lumber-based industries and the famed products that they manufactured. New Albany was once known across America as a key producer of hardwood plywood, used in custom cabinetry, and the Showers Brothers Furniture Company of Bloomington was once the largest manufacturer of furniture in America. This book talks about the industries that created the cities and towns that many Hoosiers called home.