Transcontinental Railroad

8th grade American StudiesMr. Norred

The Transcontinental Railroad

Central Pacific Railroad

• The Central Pacific Railroad was lead by “the big four”– Leland Stanford, president– Collis Huntington, vice-president– Charles Crocker, field manager– Mark Hopkins, treasurer

Route

• The Central Pacific started in Sacramento, California and built eastward.

Central Pacific

Problems

• Mountains (Sierra Nevada)– Snow– How do you get through mountains?

• Supplies– Distance they had to travel from the east coast• Took 3-7 months to receive them

• Financial– The “big four” had to build the first 200 miles of

track with their own money

Workers

• With more and more workers leaving the railroad to search for gold and silver, Crocker hired some ten thousand Chinese.– Why?• Cheap

– Less than a dollar a day

• Worked jobs that others refused• Performed with consummate skill under horrible

conditions

Quiz

• Who was not a member of the “big four”?

A.Charles CrockerB.Collis HuntingtonC.Theodore JudahD.Leland Stanford

CORRECT!!!

• Nice job you remembered the “big four” consisted of Hopkins, Stanford, Crocker and Huntington. Theodore Judah had the idea of a transcontinental railroad but was not a member of the “big four”.

• Move on to the next question.

Are you sure??

• Maybe we should go back and review what we learned. Make sure you look over the key players of the Central Pacific Railroad.

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Central Pacific Railroad

• The Central Pacific Railroad was lead by “the big four”– Leland Stanford, president– Collis Huntington, vice-president– Charles Crocker, field manager– Mark Hopkins, treasurer

Quiz

• Click on all the problems the Central Pacific ran into during construction.

Native Americans Workers LeavingMountains TornadoesLack of Money Supply IssuesBuffalo Snow

• Return to the home slide and pick a new topic.

Union Pacific Railroad

• The Union Pacific Railroad was lead by:– Thomas Durant, vice president and active head of

the railroad– Oaks Ames, principal financial backer – Grenville Dodge, lead construction– John and Dan Casement, organized the workers

and handled money Dodge Durant

Route

• The Union Pacific started in Omaha, Nebraska and built westward.

Union Pacific

Problems

• Native Americans (Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapaho)– Destroyed track– Attacked workers

• Weather– Rain brought floods, washed out the tracks– Tornadoes

• Terrain– Flood Plains– The Snake River

Workers

• The Union Pacific had a difficult time finding workers early on. – Things changed in 1865.• Civil War ended

– Ex-slaves needed work– Former soldiers needed work

– Irish labor from New York• Cheap

Quiz

• Through what states did the Union Pacific build tracks?

A. California, Utah, NevadaB. Nebraska, Utah, WyomingC. Nebraska, Colorado, UtahD. California, Colorado, Utah

CORRECT!!!

• Nice job!! By using the map, you were able to discover through what states the Union Pacific laid track.

• Move on to the next question.

Are you sure??

• Maybe you should go back and review the map of the route and look at what states the track goes through.

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Route

• The Union Pacific started in Omaha, Nebraska and built westward.

Union Pacific

True or False

The end of the American Civil War had a large impact on the Union Pacific Railroad.

True False

Correct!!

• Nice Job!! The American Civil War provided the Union Pacific with thousand of workers. Former soldiers needed work and the Union Pacific provided them jobs.

• Return to the home page and pick a new topic.

INCORRECT!!

• Go back and review the problems the Union Pacific faced. Finding workers was an ongoing issue until the war ended.

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Workers

• The Union Pacific had time finding workers early on. – Things changed in 1865.• Why?

– Civil War ended– Former soldiers needed work

– Irish labor from New York• Cheap

Construction

• Jobs– Surveyor• Avoid steep grade• find shortest route

– Graders• Level and smooth track bed• Tough work, 12 hour days

Construction

• Jobs Continued– Rail Setters• Laid the rails• Tough physical work

– Spikers• Laid spikes every 4 feet 8 1/2 “• Spikes were 6 inches long• Three swings per spike

– Tampers• Followed with gravel or sand to fill between ties

Cost

• The government would provide subsidies for the amount of track the companies laid

–Flat land•$16,000 per mile

–Mountain country•$48,000 per mile

Summary

• On May 10, 1869 the two companies met at Promontory Point, Utah.

• The Central Pacific set a record of laying 10 miles of track in one day, a record that stands today.

• Proceed to review question

Quiz

• If a company laid down 10 miles of track on flat land and 20 miles over mountain country, how much money would the government provide?

A.$800,000B.$1,120,000C. $480,000D.$1,440,000

Are you sure??

• Maybe we should go back and review what we learned. Make sure you look over what the government pays for the different types of land.

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Cost

• The government would provide subsidies for the amount of track the companies laid

–Flat Land•$16,000 per mile

–Mountain country•$48,000 per mile

Correct!!

• Nice Job!! You figured out that the government pays $16,000 per mile of flat land and $48,000 for mountain country.

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