Showing The Golden Horse: A Novel About Triumph and Tragedy Building the Panama Railroad by Juan David Morgan

“I prophesy that someday men will have to create laws which render it impossible for the prosperity of some to entail the misery of others.”

Many people know the story of the Panama Canal, but few know that of the Panama Railroad: the first transcontinental railroad of the Americas that was built during the California Gold Rush. From 1851-55, a handful of adventurers and inventive engineers drove the enterprise to tame the unexplored jungle wilderness that would soon become the first inter-oceanic railroad, link the U.S. to Central America and change Panama forever.

The Golden Horse by Juan David Morgan is an engrossing and sweeping saga that paints a vivid and personal portrayal of the events that transpired as a result of the commercial rivalry between New York shipping magnates, William Aspinwall and Cornelius Vanderbilt, and the enormous personal cost that was borne by the people involved in the construction of the railroad.

A narrative built around many of the leading personalities of the era and actual events in which they shaped history, along with many imagined characters, the novel's list of protagonists just starts with the leaders of the shipping industry. The railroad builders include the Army Corps of Engineers veteran Colonel George Totten and the young genius Minor Story. Cleveland Forbes was a pioneer of 19th century steam shipping. Elizabeth Benton Freeman was the rare woman whose identity stood out on the frontier because of her role in chronicling the adventures and motivating the trail blazers. John Lloyd Stephens was the explorer and traveler who brought the Mayan civilization to light and enthralled the U.S. with his works on Latin America. William Nelson was one of the deal making phalanx of U.S. Consuls who built up U.S. commercial ties with the region. Rand Runnels is the legendary Texas lawman who blazed an infamous trail across the Isthmus. Along with these and many other colorful personalites, the number of important Panamanian actors and argonauts hell bent for the gold fields is simply far too long to describe here.

Thousands of people died during the construction of the railroad, succumbing to tropical diseases and natural disasters. Despite the danger, the lust of gold fever and the challenge of conquering the wilderness drove the protagonists through the perils of torturous journeys, cutthroat competition, ruthless outlaws, savage jungles, the most ferocious extremes of the tropical frontier, and violent cultural clashes, but not without the thrill of romantic adventures, the wonder of human inventiveness, and rugged determination to succeed.

Intelligent and elegant in its prose, this epic tale provides a stunning marriage of history and love, technology and nature, triumph and tragedy that is truly unforgettable.