The Railroad and Culture

I never really thought much about the railroad, but The American Scholar has an interesting article which argues that it had a large effect on the culture that took form in Europe beginning in the 1840s. It affected the way people read, how music was played in public and in private, and the development of museums. 

For example, not many books were shipped between countries prior to the railroad because of the cost of shipping. It had been expensive and slow to ship books, but the expansion of railways slashed the cost and sped up distribution. The number of books France exported between 1841 and 1860 doubled. 

Trains also encouraged reading because of the boredom of long journeys. By 1854, the French publisher Louis Hachette had 60 stalls in railway stations. Fifteen years later, he had 500. The more astute publishers understood quickly the need for a new type of literature for passengers. Short stories became hugely popular, as did travel guides and the detective tales known as “penny dreadfuls.” Many more books were published outside their country of origin.

And the sale of pianos burgeoned because the rails could transport the huge, heavy instruments. Exports and deliveries multiplied, and by midcentury, piano ownership was no longer a luxury.

And it boosted tourism. A museum in Manchester, England attracted more than 1.3 million visitors from all over Europe.