Transcontinental Railroad

• Congress passed Railroad Act of 1862

• 1863 Central Pacific starts in Sacramento,CA

• 1863- Union Pacific starts near Omaha,NE

Problems

• CP- getting supplies from the East• WHY?• UP-getting ties• WHY?

Equipment

• Each mile required• 100 tons of rail • 2500 ties• 2-3 tons of spikes and fish plates• Also need wheel barrows,horse drawn

scrapers,2 wheel dump carts, shovels,axes,crowbars,blasting powder, and more

How Track Was Laid

• Survey crews worked ahead• Graders graded 100 miles at a time• Bridge and trestle crews worked 5-

20 miles ahead• Track layers grabbed rails and ties

from horse drawn carts• Pounders drove spikes

General Grenville Dodge Union Pacific

The Big FourHuntington, Hopkins,

Stanford, Crocker

Officers of the Central Pacific

West- Central PacificEast- Union Pacific

Chinese Workers

• Hired by the Central Pacific

• 9/10 were Chinese• Avg. Height-4’10”• Avg. Weight-

120lbs.• Dug tunnels

through Mts.

• Use pick,shovel, black powder

• Avg.8”/day• 24hrs./7days• winters 40’ snow• dug tunnels

through snow to get to tunnels in Mts.

Chinese workers

• All this hard work for:• $20/week and supply own food• later strike to get $35/week and not

to be whipped• suffered prejudice because were

different• clean,saved $,not drink away,• and different customs

Chinese Workers for the Central Pacific

Chinese Laborer Camp

China Wall Road Marker

China Wall near Truckee,CA

China Wall and Snow Shed near Truckee,CA

Workers laying rails

Laying Rails in the Desert

The Last Rail is Laid

Completion-May 10,1869Promontory Point, Utah

Railroad Mural Lincoln, NE

Railroad Mural Lincoln, NE

Union Pacific Engine near Scott’s Bluff NE

Union Pacific Heading East near Scott’s Bluff, NE