Positive Effects Of The Transcontinental Railroad

The railroads had a huge economic and geographic impact on Washington. The railroads were constructed by the railroad companies after the government gave them land grants so they could actually build the railroads. The railroads were built because Washington was considered a hinterland that had many natural resources that couldn’t be utilized because of their location. The railroads changed that, and then the resources were able to be sent to the east and sold. The construction of the railroads were finished in 1883. The economic impact of railroads was how the people in Washington were actually able to sell their products across the country. The geological impact of the railroads was how more and more people were becoming farmers, which turned

Established in 1842, the US House & Senate Committees have looked back at the railroad and used it to advance the ways and means of transporting goods, supplies, mail, and people. Look at what it has done; it has served as an artery, moving what is needed throughout the entire nation from the Atlantic to the Pacific. From giving jobs to those minority groups and once former slaves after the Civil War, throwing the stock market and economy left and right, assisting Abraham Lincoln in winning elections and also winning the Civil War, helping rebuild the South and the nation’s economy from the bottom up during the reconstruction era, taming the Wild West (which has a major direct influence on the American Government System), serving as one of the best ways of getting mail to citizens across the US, and expanding intercontinental trade to have its own manifest destiny. This railroad had a significant affect in the growth of this nation and its government. It’s relationship and way it impacts the government is a result from multiple chain reactions that originated from the 1860s, 70s, 80s, etc. and I strongly believe, after all of my research, that our nations governmental system would be many decades behind if it wasn’t for the transcontinental

With the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad, it boosted the US economy, opened rich farmland to people, and reduced shipping and transportation time. Although the railroad was a large investment for the US it made up for

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.

By 1890, the vast hunting ground that was so hard fought and won by Red Cloud and the Oglala Sioux would be lost. New treaties scattered the Indians to reservations and opened the last great Native American holding to the settlers so steadily branching outward from the iron road. Although the railroad affected the Native Americans negatively, the railroad affected the settlers and immigrant positively.4 Mixed emotions led to be a problem for some time to come.

The President of the United States could be classified a hero or a villain. Andrew Jackson could be considered both. He expanded the United States but he also killed a lot of indians to do that. He got rid of the National bank and helped the poor people but hurt the bankers in the north doing that and added fuel to the fire of the Civil War. This paper is about how he helped the US by hurting others, can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs right?

In 1845 John O’sullivan created the phrase Manifest Destiny. This was America's fate to settle land all the way to the Pacific to spread Democracy and Liberty. Once this this idea was brought up, people have been inspired to move west. In 1840 people felt they needed to take more land. Though some americans thought other people lived in these lands, the move to the west was still a success.This brought devastating affects to the Native Americans and Mexicans. Manifest Destiny affected the Native American tribes, Mexico, and the United States.

Manifest Destiny is a term coined by John L. Sullivan in 1845 when talking about the annexation of Texas. He believed, along with other expansionists, that it’s inevitable that the US population would spread across North America because the land is given by Providence to the United States and that it’s natural that the land should be part of the country [Doc 1]. The idea of westward expansion and Manifest Destiny had positive and negative effects on the politics, society and the economics of the United States and

The Transcontinental railroad purpose of being built was to cause positive things to happen in the US and positive things did result from the railroad. For example, westward expansion increased because of the railroad. One reason why western expansion increased because of the railroad was that travelers finally found a use for the Great Plains like how they found “millions of acres of fertile soil, land for cattle, and a land of opportunity even larger than the Lone Star State”(Doc 1). Because people found these uses of The Great Plains, people started to move rapidly west to take ahold of these opportunities. This was a positive for the US because now more people are moving west increasing westward expansion, starting businesses, and are farming in the Great Plains which helped boost the US economy. Another reason why westward expansion increased because of the railroad is there was land in the west and after the railroad was built it was for sale for very cheap prices (Doc 5). This was a positive because with more land for cheap price people started moving west but it also is creating more space for people to live and during this time many immigrants from many countries are coming to the United States looking for opportunities and the more people that came to the United States the more space they needed because they needed somewhere to live. So now that they have more land more people are able to settle in the United States in the west for cheap low prices.

The Transcontinental railroad was the most prolific tool for United States western expansion and acted as jet fuel to the fire of the United States economy. The railroad revolutionized transportation of goods and the freedom that Americans now had to travel from coast-to-coast.

Transportation was one challenge the railroad fixed. People could now travel and discover the frontier faster. Trade was also increased once the tracks were finished. Many could now take their items to new areas to make trades. Another nuisance that the transcontinental railroad corrected was the communication gap. Settlers were often isolated, so when the railroad was completed other settlers would meet up to chat and help one another out. The last major impact the completion of the transcontinental railroad created was the opportunity for new jobs. Silver mining in Comstock Lode, Nevada and gold mining in the Black Hills created many jobs for settlers. Railroad companies may have helped the United States, but they would capitalize off of the government. These companies did so through the Pacific Railway Acts. The Pacific Railway Acts provided loans and land grants to railroad companies in order to help the companies raise money for the construction of new railroads. In return the government would get discounted rates to send troops and mail. By the end of these acts, “Congress and granted over 131 million acres of land to railroad companies.” (Holt McDougal, 590). The transcontinental railroad had improved many things, but that’s not all this railroad

“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.

The transcontinental railroad, one monumental part of America's history. This railroad helped push the idea of westward expansion and improved the way settlers lived. Once the railroad was done, settlers in America could shorten a travel time of 6 weeks to 6 days. The railroad also improved the economy for the settlers, as they could ship goods to places across the country. Although this does seems like a dream come true, for every positive there is a negative. Settlers did benefit greatly from the railroad, but for some other groups it was a struggle. In the end Native americans were kicked out of there land, Chinese immigrants and other workers were overworked and underpaid, and the environment and animals living in it started to be killed off.

For citizens all throughout the United States. By traveling via train passengers could reach their destination in 90% of the time compared to the travel methods before. This also caused a large increase in Western Settlement. Now, families did not have to worry about the harsh and long travel they would have had to make to go West just a few years before. People did not have to worry about weather, supply shortage, disease, and more, as railroad travel helped all of those situations. However, every good thing has a bad side, and it is important to note that the increase of Western Settlement forced more Indians out of their land, which began to cause violence between white men and Indians.

Railroads were faster and cheaper than canals to construct, and they did not freeze over in the winter. Steamboats played a vital role in the United States economy as well. They stimulated the agricultural economy of the west by providing better access to markets at a lower cost. Farmers quickly bought land near navigable rivers, because they could ship their products out to other countries. Due to the foreign trade it helped strengthen the trade relationship between New England and the Northwest. The transportation development had many positive economic changes in the United States.