1. Railroad Expansion

2. Linking East and West
As more Americans began moving west, the need to send goods and information between East and West increased.
The Pony Express used a system of horses to pass information over 2,000 miles.
Americans wanted a transcontinental railroad built to connect the East and West.
The U.S. government gave millions of acres of land to railroad companies to start building.

3. The Great Race
Two companies led the race to complete the transcontinental railroad (1863):
Union Pacific: started in Omaha, Nebraska.
Central Pacific: started in Sacramento, California.
Workers has to blast through mountains to lay track.
On May 10, 1889, workers and reporters met at Promontory, Utah to connect the railroads.
A golden spike was used to connect East and West.

4. The Effects of the Railroads
The transcontinental railroad increased both economic and population growth in the West.
Railroad companies provided better transportation people and goods.
A trip that once took a month by a wagon now only took 4 days.
1865: 35,ooo miles of track.
1890: 199,ooo miles of track.
Railroads became the biggest industry in the United States.