The Railroads of Bornholm is a member of the 18xxx series of games. 1899+1 is set on the Danish island Bornholm. Here the railways came late (in 1900) so that explains the name of the game. You can call it 18Born if you don't like the pun.
Two, three, or four players represent investors in railroad companies, spending their initial capital to purchase shares in railway companies. The companies, each controlled by the largest shareholder, build track and run trains to earn revenue. These can be paid out as dividends to shareholders to retained to fund further track and trains. A key feature of 1899+1, as with all other games in the series, is that the interest of the President and the interest of the shareholders are not identical, so minority shareholders need to be careful with their investments. Being a President is not without its difficulties, either; bailing out an insolvent company is the sole responsibility of its President.
1899+1, while short by standards of other members of the series, is a fairly long game. Experienced players can expect to take up to three hours to complete a game.