Getting the Word Out

The book: “Tracks of Triumph: Public Service 3200–3282 Series, The Emergency Fleet Cars of Newark, Camden, Staten Island and Windsor, Ontario, Canada.” Volume 3 of the “Trolley Treasures” series. The North Jersey Electric Railway Historical Society. 165 pages. $45.

The author: Al Mankoff, a World War II veteran, trolley enthusiast and history buff, lives in High Point, where he is researching the Perley A. Thomas Car Works trolleys that were built there. He is the author of five other books. See his Web site: www.almankoff.com.

Intended audience: “Anyone interested in long–forgotten and previously undocumented history; anyone with an interest or curiosity in trolley cars as a preferred mode of urban transportation; urban historians, planners, light rail buffs, history buffs, educators and senior citizens and those who never knew the America that once was: when trolleys filled our urban streets and literally helped build all of our major cities and towns.”

What the book’s about: The book is the third in a planned series of four that provides a pictorial history of the street cars operated by the Public Service Corporation of New Jersey. The book contains more than 400 never previously published photos of trolleys, most of which were first used to transport workers to shipyards in Camden and Newark, N.J., during World War I. “This fleet of trolleys survived the war and were sold for $1 each to transit companies; they rolled on for years, were mothballed in 1937, brought out of storage again in 1942, serving the new shipyards built for World War II, and soldiered on until 1954 —- a service life of some 36 years.” Each car “rolled up no less than a million miles” in service —- “certainly enough to be called Tracks of Triumph.’ “

Why I wrote it: “My interests are eclectic with a strong emphasis on history and historical matters, particularly transportation.”

Where to get it: Order it from The North Jersey Electric Railway Historical Society, P.O. Box 1770, Rahway, NJ 07065 or see the society’s Web site: www.njerhs.org.

* n n

Authors: Tell readers about your new book (2006 or 2007 publication date). Write to My Book, 200 E. Market. St., Greensboro, NC 27401 or opinion@news–record.com to receive form to fill in about your recent work.

(c) 2007 Greensboro News Record. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.