More handpicked essays just for you.
Transcontinental railroad modernisation
Thesis on transcontinetal railroad
Transcontinental railroad modernisation
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
As the need of human transportation and various forms of cargo began to rise in the United States of America, a group of railroads with terminal connections along the way began to form across the land mass of this country, ending with the result of one of the most influential innovations in American history, allowing trade to flow easily from location to location, and a fast form of transportation, named the Transcontinental Railroad. America at this time consisted of overland travel and ocean travel. The journey all the way across the continent by land was risky and extremely difficult. It consisted of passing over mountains, plains, rivers and deserts. It also was a very timely process. In ocean travel, each ship would have to take the route around Cape Horn at the bottom of South America. This timely trip would have an average time of six months. They could also cross the Isthmus of Panama and risk getting yellow fever and other diseases. 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. In terms of railroad construction, t... ... middle of paper ... ...e Americans, resulting in a large depletion of land. As this benefited the people that had migrated throughout the United States, it really harmed the Native American population. Works Cited The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. (Columbia University Press, 2013), s.v. "Transcontinental Railroad," http://www.questiaschool.com/read/1E1-transcon. PBS. "Transcontinental Railroad Impact." PBS. PBS, 2013. Web. 12 Feb. 2014. Staff, History. "Transcontinental Railroad." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2010. Web. 11 Feb. 2014. University of California, Harvard. "Immigration, Railroads, and the West." Open Collections Program: Immigration to the US,. Harvard University, n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2014. John Debo Galloway, The First Transcontinental Railroad: Central Pacific, Union Pacific (New York: Simmons-Boardman, 1950), 141, http://www.questiaschool.com/read/14065867.
Ambrose, Stephen. Nothing Like It In the World: The Men Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad 1863-1869. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001. Print.
Two railway companies competed in this venture: The Central Pacific company laid track eastward from Sacramento, California and at the same time The Union Pacific company began laying track westward from Omaha, Nebraska and when the two lines met, the transcontinental railway would be complete. Each company wanted to cover more ground than the other – not just out of pride and competitiveness, but ...
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.
In Henry George’s article, What the Railroad Will Bring Us, it discusses the main social, political, and economic transformations that the trans-continental railroad would bring to the state of California. More importantly, he discusses not only the benefits, but also discusses the major drawbacks with the arrival of the railroad. Henry George stated the railroad would be the “greatest work of the age” (297). With a railroad stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific, multiple benefits would be brought to the state of California. First, the railroad will not only create a new means of transportation across the United States, it additionally would also become “one of the greatest material prosperity” of its time (298). This means more people, more houses,
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.
With the mining came the railroads. In December of 1878 the first train came to New Mexico, the Atchison, Topeka, and S...
White, Richard. “Strike.” Railroaded: The Transcontinentals and the Making of Modern America. New York: W.W. Norton, 2011. N. pag. Print.
The First Transcontinental Railroad: Central Pacific, Union Pacific. New York: Simmons-Boardman, 1950. Print. The. Lippincott. Lippincott's General Guide for Settlers in the United States: With Authentic Descriptions, from Official Sources, of the Climate, Soil, Products, Cost of Lands, Wages of Labour, Cost of Living, and Prices of Farm Animals as Products, in the Western and Southwestern States and Territories, and in Virginia, and of the Best Routes to and the Cost of Reaching the Districts Described 2nd Ed.
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.
Goldfield, David. The American Journey A History of the United States. New Jersey: Pearson 2011
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...
The Erie Canal created what was the first reliable transportation system, connecting the eastern seaboard (New York) and the western interior (Great Lakes) of the United States that did not require on land travel. Along with making water routes faster then travel on land it also cut costs of travel by 95 percent. The canal started a population surge in western New York, and opened regions farther west to settlement. This was the start of New York City becoming the chief U.S. port.
The current size, inherent values, and economic status of the United States owes greatly to the paramount figures and events that took place during the Early National Period of the country. However, while there is no doubt that such events- and the figures behind them- were of great importance and have molded the country into the pristine product that it is today, the various construction projects of that time have gone largely unnoticed. Canals, being one of the most prominent advances in transportation, are prime examples of forgotten catalysts of the American nation. The construction of canals- particularly the Erie Canal- during the 19th century played a key role in the geographic, economic, and cultural development of the country by
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
Universal implementation of safe patient handling and mobility (SPHM) in all healthcare settings, for all healthcare workers who assist in patient mobility, and for all patients who require assistance with mobility is a goal of practitioners and leaders in the field (Powell-Cope, G., & Rugs, 2015, p. 13). Direct patient care responsibilities are reported as the primary source for musculoskeletal disorders among nursing staff. Back injuries and shoulder strains are major concerns, which both can be extremely debilitating. A variety of tasks are within the plan of nursing care, such as repositioning, lifting, and transferring patients, and, are often performed without assistance (American Nurses, 2013). Patient care, most often related to low