There was a time in this country when railroads crisscrossed the nation, one could find a pair of railroad tracks only a very short distance from their home, and almost every town, large and small, boasted a train station of some type.

Sadly, as the 20th century progressed rail began to lose its luster and in the waning days between the 1950s and 1970s enormous amounts of our rail heritage was either abandoned or ripped up, most notably structures and landmarks such as New York City’s legendary Pennsylvania Station and the Central Railroad of New Jersey’s magnificent Newark Bay Bridge. Since that time the public has taken a greater interest in preserving our remaining rail history, including important railroad lines (either still standing and/or in place today) and stations/depots.

I have always held a personal interest in trains for most of my life, from everything to the miniature models that one can purchase at their local hobby shop to the real thing. Over that time I have begun to use the Internet more and more as a resource tool to find answers on rail-related questions I have had. While there are dozens and dozens of excellent websites out there for one to locate these answers I was finding it a bit frustrating that there was no one website which did this.

After some time I began to think, why not just create such a website myself? And that, in a nutshell, is the basis behind American-Rails.com, a website dedicated not only to bringing awareness about our country’s railroad history, both past and present, but also as a resource tool describing and educating about American railroading in general.

Similarly, it is my hope that American-Rails.com can be a beneficial guide for both those “railfans” out there like myself who may be wanting to know the detailed particulars on a subject (for instance, say, wanting to know about the demise of the Milwaukee Road) as well as someone with a passing interest looking for an answer to a common railroading question.

I will state up front that I in no way claim to be a bonefide expert on the industry and while the information presented here at American Rails is as accurate as I can possibly make it I am aware that there is the likelihood for a minor error here or there so please feel very free to send me an e-mail if you see a correction which needs to be made (and my sincere thanks in advance). This is perfectly fine with me because I am very interested in always learning more about railroading myself as well as helping others with questions they might have. With all of the above said, I really appreciate your time and interest in visiting the site and without bugging you further feel free to explore around the site using either the navigation buttons located along the left side of the page or the links here at the bottom of the homepage. Have fun and I hope you enjoy the site!

The latest railroad station in danger of demolition is the Michigan Central structure in Detroit. This multi-story building was to be demolished in early April but since then a group has been formed to save and preserve the station. For more information about it and to sign an online petition to help save it please click here. Also, if you have any interest in historic preservation please take a moment and call or e-mail the Detroit city council to let them know that this beautiful station should be preserved (it's possible alternative uses are endless because of its size).

If you are interested in hearing a very good railroad song (about the New York, Ontario & Western Railway) please click here. The song was written and performed by Paul Lounsbury and is somewhat reminiscent of Steve Goodman's City of New Orleans (performed by Arlo Guthrie). Enjoy!

American-Rails.com is a recognized Family Friendly Site so rest assured that the content provided here is available to all ages, free of any derogatory and/or mature-only content.