The book, The Long Island Rail Road in Early Photographs, details the economic and social upheaval that followed the introduction of the Long Island Rail Road that began service in 1844.  In order to provide context to the events that followed, the author points out that in the early 1840s a stagecoach made the 95 mile trip from Brooklyn to Greenport, Long Island in two and one half days.  The Long Island Rail Road could convey passengers over the same 95 miles in three and one half hours.  This dramatic shift in travel time that this railroad offered ended the isolation of people, products, thought and culture on Long Island.  This pictorial view of the Long Island Rail Road spans nearly a century from (1865 - 1955).  The photographs captured in this book not only highlight significant milestones in the history of Long Island rail transportation, they also offer a nostalgic glimpse of people and times long gone.  Events highlighted with photographs include: 1) The Howard House in East New York draped in mourning bunting after Lincoln's assassination; 2) Demonstration farms set-up along the railroad to spur economic development; 2) U.S. Cavalry soldiers returning from the Spanish-American War and 4) Woman railroad workers during World War II.  The major sections of the book, "The Long Island Rail Road in Early Photographs" are as follows: 1) Introduction; 2) Nineteenth-Century Steam; 3) Historical Events and the Long Island Rail Road; 4) Snow-fighting Operations; 5) Early-Twentieth-Century Trains; 6) The Demonstration Farms; 7) Stations and Structures; 8) Nautical Operations; 9) Modern Long Island Steam Trains; 10) People and the Long Island Rail Road; 11) Yards and Maintenance Equipment; 12) Electric Operations; 13) Leased Pennsylvania Railroad Locomotives; 14) Internal-Combustion Power and 15) Index.  In addition to an informative introduction and photograph captions, this book includes 225 black and white photographs.  This book is sure to appeal to both train enthusiasts and anyone interested in American history.  This book is 152 pages and is in very good condition.  The author is Ron Ziel.  Edition published in 1990.