1. Age of the Railroads

2. Railroads span Time and Space
Transit reliable
Huge land grants

3. National Network 1856 extended to Mississippi River
Decade later span the continent
Transcontinental railroad

4. Romance and Reality Dreams of land Fresh start
On backs of railroad workers
Chinese, Irish immigrants
Central Pacific and Union Pacific
2000 dead 20,000 injured in building

5. Railroad Time Problems with time differential 24 time zones
International conference

6. Opportunities and Opportunists
Influenced industry and business
Iron, Coal, Steel, Lumber, glass industries grew
Growth of towns
New opportunities

7. New Towns and Markets Isolated cities linked Promoted trade
Towns specialized
Large quantities sold nationwide
Western cities grow

8. Pullman Built a factory for manufacturing railroad cars
Created town around factory
Offered everything employees needed
Tightly controlled

9. Credit Mobilier Construction company created by Union Pacific
Self serving corruption
$23 Million taken
Republican party tarnished by Garfield

10. Railroad Abuses Misuse of government land grants
Sold to business vs settlers
Fix prices
Different rates

11. Ganger Laws Sponsored political candidates Laws passed to help people
Munn v. Illinois granger laws upheld
States regulate railroad

12. Interstate Commerce Act
State could not set rates on interstate commerce
Federal government could supervise railroad activities
Interstate Commerce Commission
Supreme court ruled couldn’t set rates
No Power till Theodore Roosevelt

13. Panic and Consolidation
Mismanagement, abuse, overbuilding pushed railroads towards bankruptcy
Panic of 1893
1894 ¼ of railroads taken over by financial companies
Seven companies controlled 2/3 of the nations tracks