By Donna Price

dprice@americanpress.com

Lake Charles native Thad Hillis Carter, a Methodist minister, author and self-professed train buff, has fond memories of the trains and rails in Southwest Louisiana.

His new book, “Railroads of Lake Charles” is one of the latest releases from Arcadia’s “Images of Rail” series, which includes 257 books on all types of rail lines from street cars to world famous scenic railways.

This is Carter’s second “Images of Rail” book.

“In the 1980s I began working on what eventually became my first book for Arcadia, “Kansas City Southern Railway,” he said.

That book sold well, so Carter was asked by Arcadia Publishing to write “Railroads of Lake Charles.”

Carter, who now resides in Marshall, Texas, lived in Lake Charles until age 2, when his family moved slightly east to the town of Iowa. His father worked in an oil field there.

“From the time I was a toddler, we rode trains since my parents didn’t own a car. Back then, even a small town like Iowa had daily passenger train service,” he said in an email to the American Press.

With a vast collection of historical photos and documents, “Railroads of Lake Charles” tells the story of the growth of the railroad industry in Southwest Louisiana, beginning with work on the Louisiana Western Railroad in Lake Charles back in 1879.

Readers will learn about the first street railroads in Lake Charles and see images of trains and stations that once dotted the landscape. Carter covers the saga of the Kansas City Southern, Missouri Pacific, Southern Pacific and other early lines.

Carter said he has been riding the rails for 65 years, and has no plans to stop. He and his wife, Bendy take at least one train trip each year to visit their grandchildren.

“I believe the photos and stories in this book will remind people of a time when railroads were a basic part of our transportation,” he said.

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“Images of Rail: Railroads of Lake Charles,” by Thad Hillis Carter, is a 96-page paperback published by Arcadia Publishing, Cost is $21.99.

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Online: www.arcadiapublishing.com/series/images-of-rail-books.