American Disruptor

Calling Leland Stanford the “front man” of the “big four” funders of the Central Pacific Railroad, Roland De Wolk crafts a version of great-man history dwelling on his subject's feet of clay (p. 75). Despite Stanford's shortcomings—in intelligence, eloquence, honesty, self-awareness, generosity, work ethic, and commitment to democracy and equality—De Wolk still wants his readers to see him as a larger-than-life figure who succeeded grandly. In De Wolk's rendering, Stanford is a paragon of failure, the founding father to the antiheroes born in and around the Stanford University campus who are today celebrated for their superpowers of disruption. Tracing Stanford back to humble origins alongside the Erie Canal and forward to his business triumphs built on luck, corruption, and hucksterism, De Wolk's biography aims to be a popular companion to recent revisionist works in railroad history, most notably Richard White's myth-eviscerating Railroaded (2011). It is a partial success. Well grounded

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