Connecting a continent in the 19th century (photos)
We mark the storied anniversary of the day the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads made transcontinental travel possible for the first time in North America.
Connecting a continent
As the United States economy industrialized in the 19th century, there were two ways to get goods and people from the east to the other side of the continent: either load huge freight wagons for a rigorous journey over treacherous mountains before reaching the West Coast, or travel by boat around the tip of South America.
Industrialist Leland Stanford is credited for organizing an idea to build a new railroad infrastructure that would connect the still-young nation. So it was that Congress passed the Pacific Railroad Act in 1862, guaranteeing public land grants and loans to the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific railroads. Work began in 1866 from Omaha and Sacramento, and on May 10, 1869, in Promontory, Utah, the "golden spike" was driven connecting the two rail lines.
The connection bridged the 2,000 miles to the Missouri River, and the passage to the West was reduced to just six days.
Industrialist Leland Stanford is credited for organizing an idea to build a new railroad infrastructure that would connect the still-young nation. So it was that Congress passed the Pacific Railroad Act in 1862, guaranteeing public land grants and loans to the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific railroads. Work began in 1866 from Omaha and Sacramento, and on May 10, 1869, in Promontory, Utah, the "golden spike" was driven connecting the two rail lines.
The connection bridged the 2,000 miles to the Missouri River, and the passage to the West was reduced to just six days.
The ceremony for the golden spike
Here's a photo of the ceremony for the golden spike, which connected the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific railroads. It marked the completion of the transcontinental railroad, May 10, 1869.
The engineers shake hands
An illustration in Harper's weekly, on June 5, 1869, shows the completion of the Pacific Railroad and the meeting of locomotives of the Union and Central Pacific lines as the engineers shake hands.
Across America
The route of the first Transcontinental Railroad, with the Central Pacific railroad built from Sacramento in the west, is shown in red. The Union Pacific from Omaha in the east is shown in blue.
The great link
A graphic from "Views of Chinese" published in Harper's weekly in 1869 shows the completion of the Pacific Railroad, May 10, 1869. Chinese immigrants played a large role in the construction of the first transcontinental railroad.
Devil's Gate bridge
The Devil's Gate bridge in Georgetown, Utah, was washed out just a few days before the planned railroad meeting and Golden Spike Ceremony in 1869.
Timetable and map
Covers from the timetable and map for a publication called "The Great American Over-Land Route" for the Union and Central Pacific Railroad Line, published in 1881.
Railroad Construction Citadel Rock Wyoming
Construction of a railroad bridge near the rock formation known as Citadel Rock near Green River Valley, Wyo., in 1868.
The Jupiter locomotive
Jupiter of the Central Pacific Railroad was one of the locomotives that met in the 1869 Golden Spike Ceremony in Utah, marking completion of America's first transcontinental railroad.
The American rail network did not run coast to coast until June 4, 1876, when a train named the Transcontinental Express arrived in San Francisco 83 hours and 39 minutes after it left New York City.
The American rail network did not run coast to coast until June 4, 1876, when a train named the Transcontinental Express arrived in San Francisco 83 hours and 39 minutes after it left New York City.
Golden Spike National Historic Site
Driving through open country on a gorgeous Utah day on the north side of the Great Salt Lake as part of his Road Trip 2009, CNET News reporter Daniel Terdiman discovered the Golden Spike National Historic Site.
Golden Spike National Historic Site, Utah
A modern day meeting of the engines at the Golden Spike National Historic Site in Utah, where the two lines of the transcontinental railroad joined on May 10, 1869.
Meeting of the two railroads
Here, you can see the meeting of the two railroads and the different kinds of ties used. The theory is that the ties from the West were superior due to the prevalence there of saw mills and abundant lumber.
Who could lay the most track in a single day?
During the final weeks of the project to complete the Transcontinental Railroad, the crews working on each side competed to see who could lay the most track in a single day.
"In early April (1869), the Union Pacific laid 8.5 miles of track in one day," reads a National Park Service brochure. "The (Union Pacific) then bet the Central Pacific $10,000 that they could not better the record. On April 28, 1869, the CP won the bet!"
"In early April (1869), the Union Pacific laid 8.5 miles of track in one day," reads a National Park Service brochure. "The (Union Pacific) then bet the Central Pacific $10,000 that they could not better the record. On April 28, 1869, the CP won the bet!"
The controls of the Union Pacific's No. 119 train
Some of the controls of the Union Pacific's No. 119 train, which met nose-to-nose with the Central Pacific's Jupiter at the dedication of the Transcontinental Railroad 140 years ago.
Union Pacific train No. 119
Union Pacific train No. 119, which met the Central Pacific's Jupiter at Promontory Summit, as Congress decreed the site be called. No. 119 had crossed 1,086 miles to get to the first-ever meeting point of the two railroads.
The two trains
The two trains, the Central Pacific's Jupiter (left) and the Union Pacific's No. 119, are nose-to-nose at Promontory Summit, the site of the final meeting place of the Transcontinental Railroad.
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