14.2 The age of railroads OBJECTIVES: Identify the role of the railroads in unifying the country List positive and negative effects of railroads on the nation’s economy Summarize reasons for, and outcomes of, the demand for railroad reform

Promontory Point: Golden Spike!! Union Pacific (East to West) construction begins during Civil War Central Pacific (West to East) begins after Golden Spike driven in Ogden, Utah 1869 Promontory Point  Effect: Unites East and West; Opens trade with Asia

RAILROADS OPEN THE WEST US govt. gives huge land grants to railroad companies to encourage construction Union Pacific and Central Pacific meet at Promontory Rock, Utah on May 10, 1869. Railroads built with Irish, Chinese, Mexican and African American labor. Homesteaders and immigrants flood west on new railways.

Introduction of time zones How did people keep track of the time before times zones? Why did they feel the need to adapt time zones for the railroads?

Map: Transcontinental Railroads and Federal Land Grants, 1850-1900 Despite the laissez-faire ideology that argued against government interference in business, Congress heavily subsidized American railroads and gave them millions of acres of land. As illustrated in the box, belts of land were reserved on either side of a railroad's right of way. Until the railroad claimed the exact one-mile-square sections it chose to possess, all such sections within the belt remained closed to settlement. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

New Towns and Markets Examine the map on the next slide to understand how the transcontinental railroad changed the economy.

Map: Mining and Cattle Frontiers, 1860-1890 The western mining and ranching bonanzas lured thousands of Americans hoping to get rich quick. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Pullman, Illinois George Pullman created a town for his workers Created this town to ensure a steady workforce Medical offices Legal offices Church Library Theater Athletic field

Crédit Mobilier Scandal Example of profiteering and greed of industrialists Union Pacific stole over $25 million from the government Basically a “front company” formed by the financiers/builders of the Transcontinental Railroad Insiders of the Union Pacific Railroad hired and paid themselves as much as $50,000 a mile for construction that cost $30,000. Stock was sold to influential Congressmen to keep them quiet. New York Sun unearthed the scandal and kept attention on the “Trial of Innocents” = public figures in the Grant Administration and Congress that were involved. Only 2 Congressmen formally censured. Even Vice President Colfax escaped serious charges.

Granger laws Farmers were angry at the railroads for many reasons Businesses were given the land grants instead of farmers Railroads entered into formal agreements to fix prices to keep the farmers in debt Railroads would charge different rates at different times to make a bigger profit (ex: RRs would charge a higher rate for a shorter trip, knowing there was no competition) Munn v. Illinois allowed the states to control the railroad rates IMPORTANT because now the Federal government can intervene with private businesses for the public good

Interstate commerce act Grangers success was short lived Wabash decision in 1886 overturned Munn v. Illinois because it dealt with interstate commerce Why does this matter? BUT, they instead passed the Interstate Commerce Act to regulate rates Didn’t really gain the power it needed for about 20 years

What are the effects of the finalization of the transcontinental railroad? Closing of the “Wild West”-ecological disaster Spurs industrialization Tie the country together/decline in sectionalism Decline in Native American societies Corruption/Speculation Population shift Time zones created Millionaire class created (i.e Vanderbilt) 1886 – Supreme Court’s Wabash decision!!! Interstate Commerce Act-1887!!!  the formation of the Interstate Commerce Commission

TERMS: Transcontinental Railroad George M. Pullman Credit Mobilier Munn v. Illinois Interstate Commerce Act OBJECTIVES: Identify the role of the railroads in unifying the country List positive and negative effects of railroads on the nation’s economy Summarize reasons for, and outcomes of, the demand for railroad reform