Schwantes (director, Institute for Pacific Northwest Studies and professor of history, U. of Idaho, and award-winning author of Railroad Signatures across the Pacific Northwest ) gathers about 200 historical photographs, advertisements, posters, and contemporary accounts to recreate one of the most colorful periods in the American West. He describes the technology of preindustrial modes of transportation, explains the economics that linked the birth and death of western towns and cities, the business history of entrepreneurs and stagecoach and steamboat companies, and the challenges facing passengers and employees on the stages and steamers of the northern West. Oversize: 10.25x10.50<">. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)