The Impact of Railroads in America

The late 19th Century was a revolutionizing period in American History evident by the Industrial Revolution and the Civil War. However, it was the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad which profoundly changed the United States. The discovery of gold, the acquisition of Mexican territories and the continued settlement of the West increased the need for a primary railway system connecting the East and the West Coasts.

Business growth on both sides of the country was expedited by a new form of cheap distribution into profitable, expanding markets. Easy transportation facilitated the concept of business travel and expansion on an unprecedented scale. However, some of the largest impacts of the Transcontinental Railroad can be seen through the cross­country exchange of ideas. Before the railroad existed, the only fast exchange of information was written through the pony express. The Transcontinental Railroad created an outlet of communicating new ideas and information in person. A smooth and swift cross­country exchange of people and ideas not only made America more infrastructurally sophisticated ­­ it acted as a foundation for the Western United States to grow from very little to the political, social, economic, and technological center that it is today.

First, the building of railroads out west played a huge part in the successful expansion of our country and the fulfillment of American dreams. Priot to the development of a more efficient railroad system, the movement of people and freight were

In the late 1800s, the transcontinental railroad was underway from being built. For many in that day and age it meant a multitude of opportunities. But for others, it meant that everything that they had worked hard to bring into the world was going to come crashing down on them.

Socially these railroads would make the large country of America seem smaller because you could now get across the country in much less time by just taking a train from point A to point B.

(flattened) the land by as much as a hundred miles a stretch. Behind them came

The time period largely known as the "Gilded Age" was centered around big business which caused sharp economic and social class divisions as well as political corruption that led Americans to progressive reform. From the ashes of the Civil War, a second industrial revolution was born which ushered in new innovations and technological advances that drastically changed American life. As a result, business became powerful and controlling on the economy, created difficult working conditions, and influenced politics through manipulation and corruption. Americans poured into the country at a outstanding rate during the "Gilded Age", creating a supply of workers for the various jobs opportunities all over the country. The railroad was one of the biggest innovations in the late 19th century.

“Before the building of the Transcontinental Railroad, it cost nearly $1,000 dollars to travel across the country. After the railroad was completed, the price dropped to $150 dollars.”(History.com Staff). Prior to the railroad the average citizen of America could not afford to travel across the country cheaply. America waited for a means of transportation which would connect them from the Western to Eastern states. The responsibility of creating the railroads were left up to construction companies. Once this invention was created, traveling became quick, easy and affordable. The Transcontinental Railroad could be defined as the most significant change in America, during the 19th Century.

On May 10, 1869 as the “Last Spike” struck by Leland Stanford now connected the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads across the United States at Promontory Summit in the Utah Territory. The transcontinental railroads now complete and America is now destined to move to the forefront of the world’s stage. This new railroad system encouraged the growth of American businesses and promoted the development of the nation’s public discourse and intellectual life.1 At the same time, this new railroad affected many people positively

The Transcontinental Railroad was one of the most ambitious engineering projects, economic stimulants, and efficient methods of transportation in the early United States. If completed, the United States would be truly be united from east to west. The purpose of this paper is to examine how the Transcontinental Railroad helped develop new opportunities for many aspects of American life.

The transcontinental railroad was the most influential innovation of the United States, that brought a revolution of how people traveled. One year after the Civil War ended the people of the United States were looking for a way to unite their country back together. This helped mold the United States as to what it has become today. It helped people cross the country and improved how goods were transported. The man that was forming the transcontinental railroad was a merchant named Asa Whitney. He had asked the government for funding to construct one of the greatest innovation of the United States. “Two railroads, the Central Pacific starting in San Francisco and a new railroad, the Union Pacific, starting in Omaha, Nebraska, would build the rail-line.” (ushistory.org). One fear of building the railroad was the danger of the “Great American Desert” because of the lack of resources. The Central Pacific was primarily made by Chinese immigrants. The Union Pacific was primarily made up of Irish immigrants. By spring of 1866 the Central Pacific had only build 68 miles of track from Sacramento, while the Union Pacific going west from Omaha built 200 miles of track in less than a year. Therefore the Union Pacific made millions more. The next three years the railroads would continue to try and make history.

Among the many positive effects of the transcontinental railroad are the following improvements: faster and safer transportation from coast to coast, boosts in international and intercontinental trade, faster spreading of ideas and expansion of the United States into areas not previously settled. Negative effects existed as well. More intrusion on Native Americans took place, and there was a rise in racial tensions in the nation. As the transcontinental railroad began operation, changes came fast and furious in America.

Railroads have been an important part of America’s history. These railroads had a major role in the settlement of the West. The most important railroad in American history is the transcontinental railroad. The transcontinental railroad impacted western settlement by bringing in immigrants, aiding travel to the frontier, and changing people and the economy.

In the 1830’s when railroads got introduced, Americans started dreaming about joining the Atlantic and Pacific oceans together by rail. The railroads was not viewed only as transportation but a different way of life. The dream of linking the West and the East came true after the civil war. The role of the railroads in the settlement of the Great West helped the economy, population and a fast safe travel.

Some historians may construe westward expansion as beneficial to the United States, arguing that it reduced tensions within the nascent nation. Westward migration was glorified in the early 19th century as the way in which to achieve true freedom. The West was associated with economic opportunity and basic Republican ideals. Streams of individuals seeking prosperity and liberty flooded into the west after the Louisiana Purchase. With the rapid peopling of the west, new transportation systems arose in an effort to connect the new western territories to the southern and northern regions. Roads, steamboats, and canals such as the Cumberland Road and Erie canal were created to transport people and goods from one end of the United States to the other. The railroad was another invention that promoted unity.