The construction of the transcontinental railroad (18651869) marked a milestone in United States history, symbolizing both the joining of the country s two coasts and the taming of its frontier wilderness by modern technology. But it was through the power of imagesand especially the photographthat the railroad attained its iconic status. Iron Muse provides a unique look at the production, distribution, and publication of images of the transcontinental railroad: from their use as an official record by the railroad corporations, to their reproduction in the illustrated press and travel...