The Horseshoe Curve: Sabotage and Subversion in Railroad City

Thursday, November 19 at 6:30 p.m.

On Thursday, November 19 at 6:30 p.m. guest speaker Dennis P. McIlnay, author of the regional best-selling book, The Horseshoe Curve: Sabotage and Subversion in Railroad City will hold a special presentation and book signing at the Centre Furnace Mansion.

The Horseshoe Curve: Sabotage and Subversion in the Railroad City tells the true story of the Nazi plot to destroy the Horseshoe Curve rail site near Altoona in June 1942. In this riveting book, the author brings history alive with the stunning tale of three interconnected - but little-known - events in American history. Part World War II spy story and part historical epic, this book seamlessly blends information from over 300 sources, including diaries, biographies, military records, histories, engineering studies, court briefs, and FBI files acquired through the Freedom of Information Act.

The Nazi plot to destroy the Horseshoe Curve during World War II - a mission that Hitler himself conceived - was one of the deadliest acts of terrorism in history. Had the Nazis succeeded in demolishing the Horseshoe Curve, they could have crippled the American war machine.

Most Americans know of the internment of Japanese Americans in World War II, but few know that this nation also interned 15,000 German and Italian Americans during the war. Even fewer people know that on July 1 and 2, 1942, agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested 225 residents of Altoona, Pennsylvania, home of the Horseshoe Curve, as "alien enemies" - suspected Nazi sympathizers.

Founding the Pennsylvania Railroad and building the Horseshoe Curve are two of America's greatest achievements in transportation, feats that conquered the long-insurmountable Allegheny Mountains and opened the country to settlement in the west. But before the historic Pennsylvania Railroad was completed, bitter personal, political, and organizational battles threatened to destroy the railroad and halt the westward march of the United States.

The Horseshoe Curve has won several national and regional awards, including the 2008 Gold Medal - Best Regional Non-Fiction Book in the Mid-Atlantic.

Dennis P. McIlnay of Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania is also the author of Juniata, River of Sorrows: One Man's Journey into a River's Tragic Past (2002). A Professor of Management at Saint Francis University in Loretto, Pennsylvania, McIlnay holds a joint, tenured appointment in the Business Administration Department and the Master of Business Administration Program. At Saint Francis University, McIlnay received the Distinguished Professor Award from the National Alumni Association, the Distinguished Professor Award from the Student Honors Society, and the Outstanding Educator Award from the student body. He also received the Salute to Teaching Award from the Pennsylvania Academy for the Profession of Teaching.

He will be available to sell and sign copies of his new book at the conclusion of the presentation. For more information, visit http://www.sevenoakspress.com.