The Transcontinental Railroads The Transcontinental Railroad consisted of ten major railroads that together would span the distance between the East and West Coasts of the United States. The completion of these railroads brought change, both for good and bad, and had an enormous impact on the United States and other countries of the world. Without a doubt, each railroad played an important role in shaping America into the country it is today. The Great Northern Railroad was an 8,316-mile long railroad created in September 1889 by predecessor railroads in Minnesota. It went from Lake Superior to Washington, traveling through North Dakota, Montana, and Idaho. The line was the dream of James Jerome Hill who was known as the “Empire Builder” since he had the ability to bring prosperity to areas that were barren before his influence. This railroad provided service and helped build up the grain, potato, and sugar beet regions in North Dakota, Montana, and Eastern Washington. It also played a pivotal role in the prosperity of the cattle counties of Montana as well as the oil, copper, and lumber industries (http://www.gnrhs.org). The Northern Pacific Railroad originally started in 1864 by Josiah Perham; unfortunately, due to financing problems the project was stalled until 1869. The route stretched from Lake Superior to the Puget Sound in Washington. This railroad was unique since it received no government loans to assists in its financing. The Northern Pacific lines were vital in bringing immigrants to various cities along the routes through advertising at home and abroad. Their effort to attract settlers into these regions was directly responsible for Montana, Washington, North Dakota and South Dakota becoming states in 1889. This stimulated the economies in these regions (http://www.linecamp.com). The Union Pacific Railroad was created in 1862 by government grants. Construction began in late 1863 in Omaha, Nebraska. Over a period of six years it was run through Wyoming and on to Promontory Point, Utah. The Union Pacific routes later expanded to reach north to Washington and south to Texas, with numerous subsidiary lines in Colorado. In 1936, the railroad opened Sun Valley, Idaho Ski Resort, which became a model for other ski resorts to follow (http://www.linecamp.com). The Kansas Pacific was the southern branch of the Union Pacific. The building of the route began in 1863 with the intent to transport passengers (immigrants) westward through the Great Plains. The route ran from Kansas City to Denver. Towns sprung up along the different junctions providing economic booms in those areas.
Farmers began to cultivate vast areas of needed crops such as wheat, cotton, and even corn. Document D shows a picture of The Wheat Harvest in 1880, with men on earlier tractors and over 20-30 horses pulling the tractor along the long and wide fields of wheat. As farmers started to accumilate their goods, they needed to be able to transfer the goods across states, maybe from Illinios to Kansas, or Cheyenne to Ohmaha. Some farmers chose to use cattle trails to transport their goods. Document B demonstrates a good mapping of the major railroads in 1870 and 1890. Although cattle trails weren't used in 1890, this document shows the existent of several cattle trails leading into Chyenne, San Antonio, Kansas City and other towns nearby the named ones in 1870. So, farmers began to transport their goods by railroads, which were publically used in Germany by 1550 and migrated to the United States with the help of Colonel John Stevens in 1826. In 1890, railroads expanded not only from California, Nebraska, Utah, Wyoming and Nevada, but up along to Washington, Montana, Michigan, down to New Mexico and Arizona as well. Eastern States such as New Jersey, Tennesse, Virginia and many others were filled with existing railroads prior to 1870, as Colonel John Stevens started out his railroad revolutionzing movement in New Jersey in 1815.
Cannons boomed simultaneously in New York and San Francisco at the same moment the golden spike was hammered into the ground, connecting the Central Pacific Railroad and the Union Pacific Railroad companies at Promontory Summit, Utah, on May 10, 1869 (American 1). North America became the first continent to be connected by railroad from the Atlantic coast to the Pacific coast when the Transcontinental Railroad was finished (Gale 1). The railroad was an essential component of achieving manifest destiny. The completion of the Transcontinental Railroad spurred settlement in the American West, encouraged immigration, and began an economic boom in the United States.
This had farmers in distress, for they were losing more money than they were making. Farmers’ incomes were low, and in order to make a profit on what they produced, they began to expand the regions in which they sold their products. This was facilitated through the railroads, by which through a series of grants from the government as contracted in the Pacific Railroad Act of 1862, were made possible; which latter lead to the boom of rail roads in 1868-1873.... ... middle of paper ...
There is one reason Chicago is as big as it is today and that is the fact that it is the largest rail city in the world. The railroad made Chicago what it is today, and although the canal was very important in the history of Chicago the railroads importance out weighs it by far. The canal was important because it was the vision of the first settlers of Chicago to have an all water trade route that would go through Chicago. What those first explorers saw was a way to make a canal so that they could transport goods from the St Lawrence River all the way to the Gulf of Mexico with less cost and with more efficiency. The canal was the reason Chicago was settled in the first place if not for it there might very well not be a city called Chicago. You could argue that the canal was the most important thing in Chicago's history but I think the railroads were much more important. The railroads enabled Chicago to become one of the biggest cities in the world by bringing in different business and all types of goods. Chicago is a very key location to have a railroad-shipping hub. This is because it is centrally located in the United States so goods can be shipped in almost any direction and received in a shorter amount of time. William Butler Ogden was the one who pushed for Chicago to adopt a large rail system and he should be known as the one who made this city boom. St. Louis or another centrally located city could have very well adopted the rail system and they would have reaped all the benefits.
The nineteenth century America was a period of history following a number of long lasting wars and also a whole new start to new changes in society. With the collapse of multiple nations that were in contact towards the United States, it paved the way for the growing influence and development for the United States, spurring military imperialism and conflicts, and advances in scientific exploration and technologies. Because of the ideas and resources that were began to spread, develop and flourish in areas of the western hemisphere, the nineteenth century also saw opportunities in construction, communication, and in particular the transportation systems. But as different aspects of society began to improve and that more and more freedom were in the hands of the citizens and government, the competitive market not only expanded in profit and wealth, but simultaneously faced minor conflicts due to the abuse of their rights and property. Because of the rise of new technological advancements and resources, railroads in the 19th century American society quickly boomed cities and came across as the most dominant source of transportation, as it predominantly played a role in the expansion of industry across the United States. Also, it was a movement most efficient in creating their own monopoly and was quickly adopted by many other countries that sought influence.
As shown in the photo above, on April 28th, 1869, the final ten miles of track were laid in an astonishing twelve hours. On May 10th, 1869, The Central Pacific Railroad met and connected with the Union Pacific Railroad in Promontory, Utah to complete the first transcontinental railroad after building 1,800 miles of new track.
By 1857 a concord coach was able to complete the fifty-mile run from Portland to Salem in a single day (Schwantes, 183). California Stage Company was one of the largest organizations of its kind in the United States, established direct and regular service between Portland and Sacramento in 1860 (Schwantes, 183). Wells, Fargo and Company of San Francisco utilized a far-flung network of stagecoach and freight lines in the 1860s and 1870s to serve mining regions in the interior Northwest (Schwantes, 183). Ben Holladay, the stagecoach king, laid the foundation for his transportation empire in 1862 when he gained control of stagecoach and freight wagon lines that extended from Salt Lake City to the booming mining camps and supply center of Boise City, Walla Walla, and Virginia City, Montana. Holladay sold h...
Although not a natural resource, railroads were considered one of the key factors in almost every widespread industry. It allowed companies to quickly send products across the entire nation without using expensive and time-consuming caravans or wagons. Cornelius Vanderbilt was a prominent leader in the railroad industry at this time. He was already in his later years by the time the Gilded Age rolled around and didn't even get to see the uprising of some of the greatest leaders of the time. The railroad companies took advantage of their necessity by constantly overcharging customers, especially farmers. This led to one of the first labor unio...
One of the most important achievements of the Gilded Age was the creation of a network of railroads including the transcontinental railroad, which connected the United States from New York to California, facilitating transportation across the continent. During the Gilded Age the length of all the railroads combined increased threefold ("Second Industrial Revolution"). This was significant not only because it decreased travel time from the eastern to western parts of the U.S and vice versa down from months to weeks and allowed people to settle the central United States, but also opened new areas for commercial farming and gave an economic boost to steel...
Canals, steamboats, and railroads allowed for faster travel of exports and the creation of bigger cities. The invention of the Pony Express, specialized regions, and infrastructure permitted Americans to keep in touch over long distances and the creation of market towns, which inspired a deep, national connection from all corners of the country. The giant leap made by the Transportation Revolution changed America greatly in ways of their economy and
The idea came to life in 1845 when a woman by the name of Asa Whitney presented to congress a written plan that she hoped would be handed over to the federal government. Her goal was for the federal government to consider a plan that would include the building of a railroad that began near the Mississippi River and ended near the Pacific Ocean. At first look, funds were far too low, and a plan would need to come into place to collect funding. The federal government began receiving funds from the Oregon Boundary Dispute which was concluded in 1846, the discovery of gold in California in 1849, and a collection of western territories. In the Year 1853, the congress approved the idea with a collection of funds. They began to survey different possible routes.
Many other farming machines were also developed during this time period, they all made farming in the west much more popular, easier, and profitable. The Trans-continental railroad was started in 1862, even though other trains were already running in different parts of the U.S. The telegraph also went up along with the railroads, although the first time it was used was in 1844. All four of these major technological advancements have helped the United States really get going on their Manifest Destiny. The economy would also blossom during this expansion.
With the amazing delivery of mail in 10 days across 2,000-miles of prairie land, mountains and deserts led many people to use them. With the growth communication between the east and the west the Pony Express grew in popularity. The Pony Express proved that the central route through the U.S could be traveled all winter. It supported the cattle route for the Transcontinental Railroad to meet with the Union Pacific Railroad. Communications was kept open with California during the Civil War. The Pony Express was the fastest communication between the east and west until the telegraph. It captured the hearts and imagination of people all over the world.
With the mining came the railroads. In December of 1878 the first train came to New Mexico, the Atchison, Topeka, and S...
...iling industry and the expansion of the west. The railroads helped these industries expand their territories which not only brought wealth to the large companies but, it also helped create jobs for many people. The railroad industry became an important gateway for immigrants because it introduced them to different opportunities of work and living. The railroad industry also helped to pour money into America’s economy. The railroad industry helped raise economic standards and change the way from an economy based on agriculture to an agriculture base on machinery. The railroads united America as a whole. It was the driving force of the industrial revolution that brought America together as a unity. The industrial revolution wouldn’t be the same if it wasn’t for the railroad industry that changed not only the people but, the country as a whole for the next fifty years.