1 comments about Illustated Historical Atlas of the State of Indiana 1876.

1. Although it is a reproduction, it is a very nice addtion to anyone's Indiana history Collection.

No comments about American Map Fort Wayne, in Pocket Map.

No comments about Rand McNally Indiana Easyfinder.

No comments about Rand McNally Easy to Read! Indiana: State Map.

5 comments about A Railroad Atlas of the United States in 1946: Volume 3: Indiana, Lower Michigan, and Ohio (Creating the North American Landscape).

1. The hand drawn color maps are a refreshing change from today's computer generated maps. Lot's of good cross reference information like track pans, coaling stations, tunnels etc. It is a important reference book for me in my research. This is a very nice atlas -- Archival quality paper and binding.



2. This is an amazing piece of work. All of the railroads are shown as they existed in 1946, along with a vast array of other information including mileposts, stations, towers, yards, tunnels, track pans, etc. etc. The railroads are distinguished from each other by color, although some of the colors are used for more than one railroad. The amazing thing is that the whole thing is hand drawn, including all the lettering. Every railroad line location that I have any personal knowledge of is correct.
   
   The main maps are based on the US Geological Survey 1:250000 maps, and cover about 25 miles east to west and 35 miles north to south. There are lots of detail maps at various scales. The main maps break the area covered into a regular grid, and there are no overlaps between maps.



3. If you are a true rail fan, or a rail historian, or just like railroads, buy this series of books. The maps are wonderful, the ability to figure out what rail lines ran where is unsurpassed (unless you want to spend many hundreds of dollars more on the original maps) and it takes you back.
   
   These books (currently three in total) that are presenting a history of rail lines in this country are absolutley necessary for your library, should you wish to know, in detail, what ran where.
   
   Great books...buy them all.



4. In the 19th century, railroads were a key factor in the expansion of the United States from coast to coast and border to border. In the 20th century railroads continued to be a bedrock of American commerce. Expertly compiled by Richard C. Carpenter, and published by The John Hopkins University Press, "A Railroad Atlas Of The United States: Volume 3" is an impressive compilation of railroad maps for Indiana, Lower Michigan and Ohio. This compendium begins with an informative introduction, as well as advice on how to use this specialized railroading atlas. The atlas is then divided into three sections: Key Map, Map Symbols and Abbreviations; and the maps themselves. Enhanced with an Appendix listing all of the railroads in the atlas, with copious notes on the maps and a list of references, "A Railroad Atlas Of The United States" also features indices that include coaling stations, interlocking stations and former interlocking stations, passenger and non-passenger stations, track pans, tunnels, and viaducts. Comprehensive, authoritative, and thoroughly 'user friendly', "A Railroad Atlas Of The United States" is a highly recommended addition to personal and academic library American Railroading History reference collections.



5. I ordered this book based on the reviews I read at Amazon. One of the most magical pieces is the introduction. The author describes what motivated him to write this book, those old abandoned railbeds. I remember being a kid and wondering "what are those sandstone abutments along the Kokosing River?" Well, if I didn't learn from word of mouth, I can now look this up. I even took this to some non-railfans. They loved being able to see which lines ran through their town. A MUST for historians. You won't regret this purchase. A hand-me-down for future generations.

5 comments about History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1).

1. Some people are able to believe in everything what seems to be logic and supported by some equations and statistics.
   
   It is really funny that even the wildest theory will always find its followers.
   
   Russian science has problem with pseudoscientists. For instance: Lysenko, Michurin in the agrobiology and now Famenko in history.
   
   Maybe in the next volumes of his revised version of history he will try to convince us that:
   
   - Jews are the descendants of merchants who did not pay taxes regullary and were expelled from the Novogrod.
   - Ethiopians are the descendants of the miners (that's why they are black) who escaped from the coal mines, which were placed in Ural. But one of them remained in Russia and later he became the gradfather of Alexander Pushkin.
   - Asians are the descendants of peepers or spies (that's why they have eyes with an epicanthic fold) who were unmasked and left Russia.
   
   Because everything can be proved with statistics.



2. It's some writer working under a pseudonym, getting writer-friends to write these horrible, long-winded reviews.



3. HA HA! IS FUNNY BECAUSE IS NOT TRUE! IS ALSO FUNNY BECAUSE PEOPLE SAY IS TRUE!



4. The way Fomenko rips apart consensual history in a very convincing manner has undoubtebly unnerved a few people who see it as their job to defend this history from all challenges to its integrity. Yet their defence of consensual history is unable to deter Fomenko's assaults on it throughout the book, and by the end of it Fomenko has well and truly broken through the walls. Once you have finished reading this book you will no longer look at history the same way again. However i wouldn't say that this book is for the curious reader, instead it is most likely to appeal to the serious history student who is not contented to swallow everything given to him but has an open and investigative mind.



5. Chances are even if you have a Ph.D in Mathematics and or Physics you take you car to a mechanic whose highest level of education is high school. In short, expertise in one field does not equate to expertise in another, if it did historians would be writing papers on String Theory. It should also not surprise that in a time when people get their idea of history from the likes of Dan Brown a book such as this would find a market, like Barnum said, "A sucker is born every minute!"
   
   Now, the author would have one believe those nasty Jesuits cooked up a bogus history of the world and have snookered everyone (but him, it seems the Jesuits are clever, real clever, just not clever enough) for hundreds of years. Boy, people are really stupid, except for our author. It's a good thing he has come along to lift the veil of ignorance from our eyes!
   
   This is what you must believe to take this authors thesis as valid. Myself, just as I'll take my car to a mechanic who knows his trade and pass on the mathematician, I'll get my history from someone who has dedicated his life to it's study.
   
   Also, IMHO the positive reviews are mostly pathetic attempts by friends (perhaps the author himself) to praise the book. Syntax use in many of them indicate English is not the first tongue, it almost sounds like a Russian writing (very well by the way, but certainly no Conrad like command) English.
   
   
   Too bad I can't give negative stars.

2 comments about Animal Tracks of the Great Lakes States: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Wisconsin.

1. Again, the pictures in the book are easy enough to use for my 3 year old. The information contained in the book is useful. We enjoy using this book and look forward to the spring and summer when we can travel further than our backyard.



2. Very basic book that misses the mark. The drawings of animal tracks are poor in quality and clarity. In a book illustrating animal tracks I would expect a photo of the animal that made the tracks. This is a great book for a youth.

3 comments about Hiking Indiana (America's Best Day Hiking Series).

1. Hiking Indiana is an organized guide to finding your way around on foot. When I opened Hiking Indiana, the first surprise was its "workbook" format - the pages are perforated on the edge to be torn out and packed. It's really a book to be used and become as worn out as a hiker after a good day on the trails. The first pages include a Trail Finder chart and a state map with numbers matching the table of contents that is organized by North, Central and South regions of the state. There are 45 parks or cities as chapters that include several Trail Sites and Trails. Park Facilities are shown by key icons, miles listed and Trail Difficulty Rating that is shown by 1 boot for easiest and 5 for most difficult trails. The chart also shows Terrain/Landscape with checkmarks for hills, prairie/grass, forest, lake, wetlands, overlook and river/stream. I was also surprised to see historic trails and city trails such as Madison's Historic District Walking Tour, Columbus' Architecture Walk, and Indianapolis' Canal Walk and Eagle Creek Bird Sanctuary Loop. There's even a canoe trail for those, as they said, with extra hour to give feet a rest. There are maps of parks and trails, but you'll need your atlas or state road map to get to the site. The narrative is an easy read and informative. Sally McKinney includes cautions, such as the trail goes through remote, forested hill country and to let park officials know when you leave and expect to return, to check back in or park officials may go looking for you. Another caution is when you have to walk through shallow water - a creek without a bridge, and which trails to watch for plenty of droppings from waterfowl. Hiking Indiana throws in tidbits on the state's history. Ouabache State Park has a Wildlife Exhibit Loop with bison, and 'Did you know that a bison image decorates the Indiana state seal?' This is a book to leaf through and explore. I really liked Hiking Indiana since it is a good read, lets you explore places to go, and made it all interesting. I am ready and motivated to go from wannabe hiker to getting out the hiking boots.



2. I was disappointed. A large part of this book draws on the Indiana state park system. Granted, the parks have some wonderful trails, but trail maps are distributed when you enter the parks. This book gives you little of the adventurous or out-of-the-way.



3. I have lived in Indiana for 16 yrs and have walked,hiked and horseback rode all the popular spots. This book has already found me a ton of new exciting places to go!

2 comments about Hiking Indiana.

1. My family enjoys day hiking and recently completed the Knobstone Trail in southeastern Indiana. We purchased this book in order to get ideas for future hiking trips. If you enjoy hiking, you'll find this book an interesting read and a great resource. It begins with a short introductory section containing general information, especially useful for novice hikers or people (like myself) who are relatively new to this part of the country. The remainder of the book consists of sections organized by geographical or geological themes, with each section summarizing from five to ten possible hiking trips. With hikes ranging in distance from less than a half mile to over twenty miles, both novice and experienced hikers should find something to suit their fancy.

   The summary of each hike is complete in a broad sense, including driving directions, general information about the location, decent (though not topographic) maps, mileages to key points along the trail, and somewhat detailed hiking descriptions. Having just completed the Knobstone Trail, I would have benefited from having the mileage and hiking descriptions in this book which are not available in this detail in any other source.

   The only details that detracted from this book, in my opinion, were two apparent factual errors -- one in a road name, the other in describing a short segment of the route of the Knobstone Trail. I have seen both errors in other sources including some official publications cited by the author. Although some readers may question the lack of topo maps, the author includes details of elevation gain in each description. Furthermore, most hikes which are lengthy or strenuous enough to require such information are likely to be located in state forests or other public lands for which topo maps are frequently available.

   Overall, I highly recommend this book especially for people like myself who enjoy rugged day hiking. There are certainly some hikes described which will appeal to campers and through hikers, as well as some moderate to easy hikes for novices. Whether you live in Indiana or a nearby metropolitan area such as Chicago, Louisville, or Cincinnati, you will likely find several hikes within a drive of an hour or two.




2. As an avid hiker in southwest Ohio, I had searched for years for a decent hiking guide for my neighbors in the Hoosier state. I saw Falcon had one out, so I decided to give it a shot. What I found was a real gem.

   There are 65 destinations described in this book with one hike per destination. The destinations range geographically from Indiana Dunes in the north to Hoosier National Forest and the famous Knobstone Trail in the south. Distances range from 1.5 miles to multi-day backpack treks, with the average at around 3 or 4 miles. Thus, there is something in here for every ability and every location.

   Each hike contains a summary of the "critical facts" about the trail (length, difficulty, land management, nearby campgrounds, etc.) and a map of the trail that includes only the essential, but still enough, information. Trail descriptions are excellent, as are directions to the trailhead. The only minor drawback to this guide is the lack of a trail summary in the front of the book, a feature I have come to expect in most top-notch guides these days. Thus, you might have to do some page flipping to find a hike of interest to you. There is, however, a table of contents, so the impact of this omission is lessened.

   In summary, this book is a great source of information and a real joy to read and use. You will find the best hiking Indiana has to offer described here. Further, this book easily beats any other guide to Indiana hiking on the market. I enthusiastically recommend this guide for purchase.

5 comments about Indiana Atlas & Gazetteer.

1. I really like this Atlas and have found it very useful for mapping out bike routes. It's great for finding the back country roads. Unfortunately, it doesn't distinguish between paved and gravel roads and the topographic information is useless, since the elevation line separation is 60 feet. In Indiana, 60 foot elevation changes can include entire hills. I've looked at other maps and atlases, and unless you want to buy several small, regional, topographical maps from the USGS this is the best book out there for the money.



2. We use these books in business to get our service men where they need to be. They are excellent!



3. This atlas is shows all the small roads and some long driveways, has GPS longitudes and latitudes, marks places of interest for day trips, and is useful for traveling the back roads to see the real Indiana. My wife and I are retired and are not usually in any hurry to get somewhere. This means we can drive the back roads to most places we desire to end up. With this map we actually get where we intend to go and still see some very interesting parts of Indiana. These maps are in constant use by us whether referencing locations mentioned in the news or in the van going somewhere. A great purchase with many uses.



4. My wife and I use this atlas on a near-constant basis for work and fun. With pinpoint accuracy it helps us determine exactly which of Indiana's 92 counties an obscure country back road resides. This is invaluable to my title-searcher wife, saving her many hours and miles of wasted traveling to the wrong county seat. When out on the road exploring the wonderful small towns of our state it helps us navigate through unfamiliar territory and find alternate, interesting routes that we would not have otherwise discovered. Highly detailed, easy to read and follow, I happily recommend this publication to anyone requiring a really good and useful local state atlas.



5. As an avid covered bridge photographer, I have found these Atlases to be invaluable as a guide. The bridges (and other points of interest) are well marked and easy to find. My only complaint is that while traveling the book itself it too big and rather awkward to use without a navigator. A smaller book would be better. I will continue to buy them, however, as my search broadens.