Books

BUFFALO CREEK & GAULEY, by Willam E. Warden

This is an excellent source of information on the ERC&L and BC&G.  Written by the late William Warden, it was published in 1991 by Ed Crist, Highland Mill, NY, ISBN 1-878343-03-3.

It is an 80 page soft bound book covering the entire history of the BC&G.  It includes many black and white photos and has color photos on the front and back cover.  All photos are captioned and there is substantial additional text.
B&O STEAM FINALE - Volume 1 , by Deanne Mellander and Bob Kaplan

This 120 page hard cover book is by Deane Mellander and Bob Kaplan with photos by William Price.  Published by Potomac Chapter of NRHS.  Library of Congress Catalog No. 86-909462.

Pages 98-104 include 10 excellent color photographs with caption and two paragraphs of description of the BC&G and ER&L logging.  Photos include #4, #14, #19 and the railbuses.


RAILS THROUGH DIXE, by John Krause

This is a 175 page hardback book by a famous rail photographer.  It was published by Golden West Books, San Marino, CA, 1965.  ISBN 87095-020-7.

Pages 64-73 include black and white 18 photographs with captions of both the logging and gob pile operations of the ERC&L Co.

Pages 74-77 include 9 plack and white photographs of all 3 BC&G Consolidations.
WEST VIRGINIA LOGGING RAILROADS, by William Price

This 108 page hardbound book was published by TLC Publishing, Inc., 1993.  ISBN 1-883089-03-4.

Pages 44-59 cover ERC&L activities, including periods as W.M. Ritter and Georgia Pacific. with text and 33 black and white photos.  Page 106 has color photos of #3 and #12.  The front cover is a painting of #12 fording a stream.
TRACKSIDE IN WEST VIRGINIA - 1963-1968, by Bob Withers, published by Morning Sun Books, Scotch Plains, NJ
Other Books - Alphabetical Order
AMERICA'S RAILROADS - The Second Generation, by Don Ball, Jr., published by W.W. Norton & Co., NY, 1980.  219 pages.  ISBN 0-939-01416-9.  Page 108 - Color photo of BC&G #14 and B&O GP9 at Dundon interchange taken in October 1962.  Page 109 - Georgia Pacific #19 at Swandale, October 1962.
The first 8 books shown contain the most information about the ERC&L and the BC&G and are listed in the order of the amount and usefulness of their content.  Other books are shown in alphabetical order.
RAILROADS An American Journey, by Don Ball, Jr., published by New York Graphic Society, Boston, 1975, 287 pages.  ISBN 0-316-73300-8.  Color jacket cover and black and white frontspiece are of BC&G #13.  Pages 192-194 include text describing author's visits to the BC&G.  Pages 202-207 include 9 photos of BC&G.  On page 210 is a black and white photo of #19 crossing a stream.
RAILS, by Don Ball, Jr, published by W.W. Norton & Co., NY., 100 pages.  ISBN 0-393-01480-0.   This hardback book has three black and white photos of the BC&G including #13 at the Widen, #4 at Dundon sand tower, and a detail of #14.
STEAM AND THUNDER IN THE TIMBER, by Michael Koch.  This is a limited edition 280 page book on Shay locomotives.  Pages 261-265 and 272-275 include 11 black and white photos of ERC&L logging operation, including the American log loader and the loggine diesel.
STEAM IN THE SIXTIES, by Ron ZIel and George H. Foster, published by Merideth Press, NY, 1967.  Library of Congress 67-24432.  Pages 96-99 include 6 black and white photos by Michael A. Eagleson and two paragraphs of descriptions.  One photo was taken from inside the Dundon engine house.
TRAINS OF AMERICA, by Don Heimburger, Heimburger House Publishing, 1989.  ISBN 0-911581-13-8.  On page 78 of this all-color book is a large color photo of ERC&L #19 crossing a stream on May 31, 1958.
Detail infomation to be added
HISTORY OF MACK RAIL MOTOR CARS AND LOCOMOTIVES, Edited by Randolph Kulp

This 68 page soft bound book was published in September 1959 by the Lehigh Valley Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society.  It traces the history of Mack motor cars and locomotives over the entire history of the endeavor.  It contains numerous references to and photos of the specific railbus that was acquired by the BC&G.
RAILS ACROSS THE MIDLANDS, by Richard Cook, Golden West Books, San Marino CA, 1964.  This book contains a number of photos of the BC&G and ERC&L, mostly taken by Cook.  Thanks to George Pierson for identifying this reference.
TUMULT ON THE MOUNTAINS, by Roy Clarkson, McClain Printing Co., Parsons, WV, 1994.  This book contains three ERC&L photos by John Krause.  Thanks to George Pierson for identifying this source.
SHADES OF SUGAR TREE by T.G. Griffith

This is not a book about the railroad, but rather this is a novel about life in the towns the railroad served as told from the perspective of a young man who grew up there in the 1950s and 1960s.  It is a light-hearted and humorous account of the experiences growing up in the hills of WV when coal mining was the primary industry.  Available from the author at 5778 Widen/Dille Road, Dille, WV 26617.
Photo of the author that appears on the back of the book showing part of the road and the valley that was the setting and inspiration for much of the novel.
SLOW TRAINS DOWN SOUTH...Daily 'cept Sunday by Mallory Hope Ferrell, Hundman Publishing, 2005.  This book contains 22 pages of black and white photos of the logging and gob operations of the ERC&L as well as the BC&G.  Includes captions.
TRACKSIDE IN SEARCH OF VIRGINIA & WEST VIRGINIA STEAM with August Thieme, by William McClure III, published by Morning Sun Books, Scotch Plains, NJ, 20012, ISBN 1-58248-346-9.  All color photos with extensive captions plus additional text. Pages 78-89 cover the Elk River Coal & Lumber logging and gob operations, pgs. 90-99 cover the BC&G coal hauling operations, and pgs. 100-109 cover the operations during the W.M. Ritter Lbr. Company era and pgs.109-114 cover the Georgia-Pacific period.  This volume has many excellent photos of the railroads, mostly taken by August Thieme.
BC&G IN COLOR, by Bob Withers and R. Brooks Stover, published by Morning Sun Books, Scotch Plains, NJ, 20012, ISBN 1-58248034206.  This 126 page book contains over 240 color photos of the BC&G and ERC&L logging from about 1955 through the end of operations.  One chapter is describes the early history with selected black and white images..  Other than William Warden's book (above), this is the only book completely dedicated to the BC&G and the only one featuring nearly 100% color images.
THE ELK RIVER COAL & LUMBER COMPANY by R. Brooks Stover

This book was published by Elk River Enterprises (ISBN 978-1-4507-386-5) and basically includes the content of this website.  It is printed in black and white and besides the material from the website includes addtional first-hand stories from individuals who lived in Clay County and worked for the BC&G.  

At 216 pages in length it includes photos, trackplans and maps.

It is currently out of print although some book sellers may still have copies.