Should Government Take Over Railroads

The first reason the railroad helped the united states more economically than anything is because it helped us import and export things easier. In Doc F, there was 329 million tons of exported goods by rail and 171 million tons of imported goods by rail in 2014. This shows that the railroad made more money than ever before and without it our economy would be nothing. It would’ve never gotten started and the United States would be a lot different today. The Transcontinental

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

The Transcontinental Railroad: a 1,907-mile continuous railroad line constructed in the United States between the years of 1863 and 1869, sitting west of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers to connect the Pacific coast at the San Francisco Bay with the existing eastern U.S. rail network at Council Bluffs, Iowa. By 1868, just about 4,000 people were building this railroad, and two-thirds of them were Chinese. The Chinese were paid handsomely when they were first hired, being paid $28 at the start of hire. The more experience a worker had, the more he was paid. Despite their small stature, the Americans believed that if the Chinese could build the Great Wall of China, why not build the first transcontinental railroad?

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.

The Transcontinental railroad impacted America most economically due to the fact that it encouraged trading among the states. With the railroad up, states now had a faster way of getting their products in and out. People could get materials not native to where they were living in a matter of days by rail instead of weeks or months by wagon. In document F it states the economical impact that the railroads have had on our imports and exports. Even now we still use the tracks to export and import things like in 2014 the U.S imported 12.3 million tons of metals and exported 100.1 million tons of coal by rail. Since the railroad was very appealing to the American people, more were inclined to ship out their products by rail and by doing so helping the States collect more on taxes and the people with a fast and better way of transport.

As railroad unions spread across the states they soon found their selves in competition with canals. However, railroads were able to be built in locations that canals could not get access to; which gave railroads even more business. The railroad had a rapid expansion that had an effect on both political and economic development throughout the states; which were good and bad. However, with the railroads intensifying so quickly it made things a lot easier for personal and business usage to travel and ship goods.

The creation of railroads was a very significant advancement in the early years of the states, especially in Georgia. Very few Georgians jumped at the idea of railroads being built in the state - but very few realized how much money one could accumulate by building these tracks. This is where the rich and powerful began to get nasty. The rich became more rich, and the poor became even more poor. Railroads helped just as much as it harmed the state.

The railroad had impacted the lives of many, even though it had ruined some lives it made others wonderful. Throughout the process of the railroad being built many settlers had been attracted to the new land that was discovered with it, “Millions of acres of the finest land in Nebraska for sale, at prices that defy competition.”(document 5) This allowed more people to make a living by selling

I see the many benefits that this railroad brings; I can see why you introduced the bill. The benefits are great. It would be easier to get supplies, and selling commodities would be very easy and inexpensive. My wife’s family from New York can come and visit, the many benefits the transcontinental railroads brings, I agree with you that much.

Specifics from book: “America was made by the railroads” (book). Railroads allowed the economic development that empowered the country to develop the world’s richest nation. American society was transformed from a mainly agricultural economy to a manufacturing driving force in the period of a few eras of the nineteenth century. Even though technology was quickly advancing, it was not quite ready to handle railroads in America to their full potential. Obtaining the requisite financing and labor were major obstacles for the industry. “The legal status of the railroads was over dependent on the whim of local state legislators, since, initially, there was no clear understanding of how to treat these new and potentially monopolistic enterprises. During the first two decades of the railroad age, much effort was expanded in overcoming these

In the aftermath of WWIII, the United States is in shambles and has adopted the lands that were once England and Russia. It is apparent that large cities are the safest place to life.

Today I look back at my home. Or to put it correctly, what used to be my home. The Americans and their hired Chinese and Irish men are, as we speak, running the tracks down that divide our land. Not theirs, but our land. These people are laying down tracks separating our lives as we speak. Our entire way of operating will be destroyed. And it doesn’t seem like it only affected their side, but our American side as well. They can now possibly be viewed as a greedy nation for the ill-treatment of all those immigrants. It seems the idea of The Transcontinental Railroad has more downs that ups; injuring it workers, taking down Native American Homes, and showing how

The construction of the railroads helped various companies grow and create wealth but not without the help of the government. Big business benefited from protective tariffs, grants of lands, and abundant natural resources. Although this governmental intervention contradicts the philosophy of laissez-faire; there was little opposition from the companies aside from trying to regulate their businesses. They were very pleased when the government interfered on their behalf. The railroad helped create new markets in the west like farming, mining, and cattle were among the western industries that had the greatest impact. With more immigration to the west the animosity grew between new settlers and Native Americans. The government tried to interfere by passing different Acts but

This is relevant to this paper because the topic is, how does the Transcontinental Railroad affect farmers? The transcontinental railroad is just like any other railroad, therefore, it has the same effects. This website is accurate, because the same theory is shared amongst many other websites. This website is quality, providing pictures and is easy to navigate.

An emerging issue is that of urban sprawl. While some aspects of urban sprawl has been seen since ancient times, this phenomenon has started gaining the most momentum in the past century, aided by the advancement of technology, especially with the rise of mass produced automobiles, houses and highway systems. Many people unknowingly contribute to this environmental problem, as is the nature of it. Urban sprawl deals with the growth of the suburbs, the area between the urban and rural areas of a city. Most of America’s largest cities and states, in terms of population, are prime examples of urban sprawl. Opponents of urban sprawl usually cite the government as a major cause of sprawl. The government may be a major catalyst of