POLS 4555: RAILROADS AND AMERICAN POLITICS

Spring Semester AY2016-2017
Department of Political Science
University of Georgia
Athens, GA, 30602-1615

Classroom: Baldwin 311
Time: 3:35 - 4:25PM Monday, Wednesday, Friday

Instructor: Keith T. Poole

Office: Room 304D Baldwin Hall
E-Mail: ktpoole@uga.edu
WebSite: Voteview Home Page

Office Hours: By Appointment

The following texts will be used in this course:

• Craig Miner, A Most Magnificent Machine
• John F. Stover, American Railroads
• Harold C. Livesay, Andrew Carnegie and the Rise of Big Business
• John Steele Gordon, An Empire of Wealth

Requirements

Grades will be determined by three examinations -- two mid-semester exams and a final exam. The exams will be Multiple Choice. The midterms will be worth ¼ each and the final 1/2 of the course grade.

The first Mid-Semester exam will be on Friday, 17 February 2017, 50 minutes, in class.
The second Mid-Semester exam will be on Friday, 31 March 2017, 50 minutes, in class.
The final is scheduled for Friday, 28 April 2017 from 3:30 to 5:30PM

The Multiple Choice exams will be about 25 questions each for the Midterms and 40-50 questions for the final. They will be straightforward with no "tricks".

Example MC Questions Final

---

Course Outline

1. Introduction: Why are Railroads Important?
   
   Assignment:
   
   
   • Chapters 1, 2 and 3, An Empire of Wealth
     
     
     
     Why are Railroads Important? (PowerPoint)
     The Current State of the Railroad Industry (PowerPoint)
     
     The Alameda Corridor (PowerPoint) -- Mixed Public-Private Infrastructure
     The Alameda Corridor East Project -- Mixed Public-Private Infrastructure
     Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency Program (CREATE) -- Untangling the Railroad System around Chicago
     Second Avenue Subway -- Connects to Long Island Railroad coming through 63rd Street Tunnel
     Second Avenue Subway and the New Tunnels Underneath Grand Central Station -- Untangles Long Island Railroad into Midtown Manhattan
     New Tunnels Being Bored in Manhattan and Queens, New York (PowerPoint)
     
     The Railroad in American Life: A Political-Economic Framework for Understanding Their Importance (PowerPoint)
     
   
   
2. American Politics, Economics, and Business prior to the Railroads: 1800 - 1830
   
   Assignment:
   
   
   • Chapters 4 - 8, An Empire of Wealth
     
   • Chapters 1 and 2, American Railroads
     
   • Chapters 1 - 3, A Most Magnificent Machine
     
     
     Politics, Economics, and Business 1800 - 1830 (PowerPoint)
     
     
3. Railroads as Big Business
   
   Assignment:
   
   
   • Chapters 9 - 12, An Empire of Wealth
     
   • Chapter 3, American Railroads
     
   • Chapters 4 - 10, A Most Magnificent Machine
     
     
     Early Railroad Development (PowerPoint)
     The Trunk Lines as Big Business (PowerPoint)
     Early Railroad Corporate Charters (PowerPoint)
     
     
   
   
4. Andrew Carnegie, the Standard Railway of the World, and the Industrialization of the U.S.
   
   Assignment:
   
   
   • Chapter 13, An Empire of Wealth
     
   • Chapters 1 - 11, Andrew Carnegie
     
   • Chapters 11 - 14 and Conclusion, A Most Magnificent Machine
     
     
     Andrew Carnegie and the Pennsylvania Railroad (PowerPoint)
     Oil Refining and Coke Production (PowerPoint)
     1937 Newspaper Article about the Lucy Blast Furnace being Torn Down
     
   
   
5. The Nature of Railroad Competition
   
   Assignment:
   
   
   • Chapter 5, American Railroads
     
     
     The Political Problems of the Railroads (PowerPoint)
     The Nature of Railroad Competition (PowerPoint)
     
   
   
   
6. Railroads and the Development of Agriculture
   
   Assignment:
   
   
   • Chapter 4, American Railroads
     
   • Chapter 14, An Empire of Wealth
     
     
     Recall: The Political Problems of the Railroads (PowerPoint)
     Railroads and the Development of Agriculture (PowerPoint)
     
   
   
7. Railroads and Government Regulation: 1887-1920
   
   Assignment:
   
   
   • Chapters 6 to 8, American Railroads
     
   • Chapters 15 to 17, An Empire of Wealth
     
     
     Corrupt Practices by Railroad Managers (Part 1)
     Land Grants: Their Uses and Misuses (Part 2)
     The Courts and Congress Step in To Regulate Railroads (Part 3)
     
   
   
   
8. Railroads Triumphant: 1980 - 2016
   
   Assignment:
   
   
   • Chapters 9 and 10, American Railroads
     
   • Chapters 18 to 20, An Empire of Wealth
     
     Agenda For Topic 8
     
     
9. Railroads and the Future of the American Transportation System
   
   Assignment:
   
   
   • Stop This Train! Are Trains Slower Now than they were in the 1920s? Tom Vanderbilt, Slate, May 15, 2009
     
   • Beware of Low Flying Aircraft! Chris Camp, The Northwest's Own Railfan
     
   • Improve Existing Rail Lines for Passenger Trains
     

---

Site Links

VOTEVIEW Blog
NOMINATE Data, Roll Call Data, and Software
Course Web Pages: University of Georgia (2010 - )
Course Web Pages: UC San Diego (2004 - 2010)
University of San Diego Law School (2005)
Course Web Pages: University of Houston (2000 - 2005)
Course Web Pages: Carnegie-Mellon University (1997 - 2000)
Analyzing Spatial Models of Choice and Judgment with R
Spatial Models of Parliamentary Voting
Recent Working Papers
Analyses of Recent Politics
About This Website
K7MOA Log Books: 1960 - 2017
Bio of Keith T. Poole
Related Links

---