Did you learn anything new about the time period covered in the book? Did anything surprise you? Is there anything you wished the authors had talked more about?

Did you learn anything new about the time period covered in the book? Did anything surprise you? Is there anything you wished the authors had talked more about?

The system with the trains having cars pulled across town to another station by horses and the people being put on carriages to move to the next station. That was something I had never heard of. I was also very interested to learn about how Pinkerton got started and how he hired women. There methods of infiltrating a group by pretending to be someone else was very informative.

Much of the historical pieces were familiar however I had never heard of this earlier plot to assassinate Lincoln. I enjoyed reading about the lead up to his eventual election win and about those who had interacted with him such as Frederick Douglass, Stephen Douglas and Pinkerton.

I agree with Lynneb, that rail system was crazy!
I was also surprised that no protection was offered the President and that the president elect was expected to make his own way to the White House.

The transportation by train: that different railroads were owned by different companies, to change trains you had to disembark - travel across town - and get on a new train, how personal rail cars were pulled by horses from one station to another.
Communication: face to face, by letter, or by telegraph. It is amazing that Pinkerton was able to pull it off with all the different people involved and all the moving pieces.

I agree with a few of the above comments; the train ownership and the process of connecting to separate routes was really interesting. Pinkerton's path of developing his agencies and hiring females to take part had to have been remarkable in that time frame.

Having taken many trains in my life, who enter and leave from the same station, I found it amazing that there were so many train lines and that passengers had to coordinate their travel not only on the train but between the stations. It is amazing that they could find the information on schedules and stops with flyers made by hand set type and vast distances. Also, learning about the Pinkerton agency before their violent history of union busting and violent intimidation was enlightening.

I did learn new things, and I also think what I already knew was expanded. I have always loved train travel. For me to travel to college, from my suburban Illinois station on the Rock Island Line, to Chicago, and then to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, meant two train lines and two different train stations in Chicago. I would walk or take a taxi between the two stations. So that part did not surprise me, but I did not know about horse drawn train cars or carriages between stations in the past. Fascinating to think about! I also loved learning about the Pinkerton agency and the women involved. I had heard about Pinkerton, but this book expanded greatly on what I knew before. (I'm sure there are other things I learned also, but these two elements instantly come to mind.)

I did not know that there was an assassination plot before the inaugeration.

Beyond not knowing about the plot to assassinate Lincoln before he was sworn in, I lost sight of how complex train travel was: not just the number of different train lines, but also things like having horses pull train cars through the city. I was surprised by the history of the Pinkerton Detective Agency. I always thought the agency was formed in the mid 1900s and had no idea that the founder was instrumental in advancing undercover work. Most surprising to me was the number of secret societies. Their membership, geographic spread, their brazen undercover activity and the ease with which they seemed to relay information (without the advantage of today’s digital options) was impressive.

Yes, It seemed to be a precursor of the Ku Klux Klan. It feels it could of gone into this more.

I knew the broad outlines of the trip through Baltimore, but not the specifics so I appreciated learning that. I, too, was surprised that each railroad had its own station rather than there being one central station. Although I knew it before I read this book, I continue to be amazed at the access average citizens had to high ranking individuals in the government at that time.

The train system and train stations confounded me. How could there be such inefficieny? Then I remembered my home town. We, too, had two train systems and two stations, one serving a north and south line and the other serving an east and west line. Then I also remembered that the town I first worked in had the same arrangement. And, the stations were a good mile apart on the other side of the river. I had forgotten this because we haven't had a passenger train for fifty years.