Transcontinential Railroad Thesis

3. Describe at least two effects of the construction of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific RRs between Sacramento and Omaha. The construction of the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific railroads allowed for the construction of the transcontinental railroad. The transcontinental railroad led to westward expansion.

The invention of railroads changed America's economics because it allowed for high volume of goods to be transported. The cost of traveling and shipping was also much cheaper. Before railroads, people would travel by boat for about $1,500. When railroads began their operation, the cost drastically reduced to $150. Traveling the railroad was more comfortable and people were not as susceptible to contact yellow fever that was rampant.

The transcontinental railroad was a very important part in the growth of the United States of America. In 1869, California, on the west coast, was separated from the United States, on the east coast. There were over a thousand miles of mountain ranges and plains with no reliable way across them. Before the railroad, there was no way to get to the other side of the country without a high chance of death, and many people wouldn't take this risk. Now, with the help of trains we can travel at high speeds over and under land Subways one modern version of trains and they have helped us in so many ways.

The Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad, wasn't your average railroad so to speak, it was just an analogy used to help out the fugitive slaves. It was the most dramatic protest action against slavery. The Underground Railroad was very effective, in helping move hundreds of slave’s northward each year. Due to this helping aide, the South lost over 100,000 slaves between 1810 and 1850.

Exam Paper 1 In what ways did the American West of the late nineteenth century represent a contrast to the East? In what ways did the two regions resemble each other?

Despite the proliferation of horsecar transportation in the late nineteenth century, the Ocean Beach area remained disparate from the bulk of San Francisco residents. The recreational opportunities of Ocean Beach, Harbor View, and Sutro’s Cliff House attracted the need for a transportation solution. The Sutter Street Railroad was the first company to attempt steam dummy service to this section for San Francisco in 1877. The route connected horsecar service at Broadway and Polk streets to a steam dummy that took riders to Harbor View, but its location, remote from the many amusements of the beach, caused it to be unsuccessful.

In 1862 Miners began to invade the rocky mountains and plains, clashing with Indians, the Lakota Siox massacre or capture 1000 people on the Minnesota Frontier. John Henry goes to the mine to get money for his family in a time of need. The captain tells John Henry that the mountain is caving in but John tells him that its just his hammer suckin wind.

Railroad crossings can be very dangerous. They are also a very important part of today’s society. Railroad crossings will only be dangerous if you make them. If you get hit by a train the odds that you will live is not very good.

The transcontinental railroad caused a lot of political impacts including uniting divided houses. In the 1850s, the greatest obstacle building the transcontinental railroad was the sectionalism in the American politics: between the North and the South. The biggest barrier in getting the railroad built in the mid-century in America is slavery. Congress had to make a decision whether or not slavery should be allowed in the new territory that was made easily accessible but the transcontinental railroad. Abraham Lincoln, the president, was less known as a great friend of the railroad.

The Transcontinental Railroad was the first line across the continent. The railroad line stretched from Omaha, Nebraska, all the way to Sacramento, California. This railroad allowed the United States the opportunity to expand westward, as both people and resources would be able to be shipped much faster than before. In 1862 The Pacific Railway Act was passed, which allowed the Union Pacific Railroad and the Central Pacific Railroad to construct the lines for the transcontinental railroad. On May 10, 1869 the Transcontinental Railroad was established at Promontory, Utah.

The establishment and growth of the railroad had many influences on the Westward Expansion of America in the later half of the 1800’s. The railroad fueled the conflict with the Native Americans of the Plains, induced growth in population and economy in previously established urban areas, and lastly expanded the lands that were used for agriculture. The railroad affected various aspects of America’s West and the Great Plains. The advancement of the railroad West added to the already tense relationship with the Native Americans of the Plains.