I like Beebe’s stuff too. However, his penchant for florid prose often overwhelmed his actual knowledge of the railroad scene. One of my favorite howlers is one in The Central Pacific And Southern Pacific where he refers to a 2-8-2 as a “rara avis” (‘rare bird’ for the Latin challenged) on any railroad’s roster.
'Course, there’s the fact that Lucius Beebe and Charles Clegg were also often referred to as “Lucy and Charlie”. After having seen the interior of the “Virginia City”, I can see why. It looked like a bordello on 6 wheel trucks. Beebe and Clegg were as about as close to being out of the closet as it was possible to be 50 years ago.
I like the Book " When Oklahoma took the trolley " Greta pictures and maps. i learned about little railroads that I never knew even exsisited. I also like the book " Railroads in Oklahoma "