Latin American Economies In The Late 19th Century

Through the development of a transcontinental railroad system, the west was settled and many American dreams were in reach.

During the 19th Century, the United States was downright obsessed with expanding westward. They believed it was their God-given right to span the entire continent. With more and more territories being added to the ever-growing roster, they needed a way to get from point A to point B quickly. The solution: The Erie Canal and the Transcontinental Railroad. The result: A huge growth in the U.S.’s economy.

With the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad, it boosted the US economy, opened rich farmland to people, and reduced shipping and transportation time. Although the railroad was a large investment for the US it made up for

The research question that is being addressed is ‘How did the development of railroads between 1865 to 1929 impact the Mexican economy?’. The first source’s origin is a book that is titled The Civilizing Machine: A Cultural History of Mexican Railroads, 1876-1910 written by Michael Matthews. This source helped a lot in the process of gaining information because the information was written in a way that could be understood clearly. The purpose of this source is to inform the general public about what had happened during the age of railroads in Mexico. The value of this source is that there are a

The South America has evolved as the one of the most dynamic region of the world so much development taking place. In 2005 Latin American economies managed to grow at average of 5.5% while inflation is in single digit which shows that it has created the economic prerequisites to deal with the aforementioned problems.

Even though most of Latin America became independent of European colonial rule in the 19c, what were some of the cultural influences and other ties that still existed between the two continents? Between 1810 and 1825, all the Spanish territories on the American mainland gain their sovereignty from Spain. Simultaneously, the power of the Catholic Church diminishes, including its patronage of the visual arts. During these war-torn years, cultural production declines. These years witness political reform and the beginnings of self-fashioned societies. Caudillos or military dictators initially fill the vacuum left by the break-up of colonial rule, including Juan Manuel de Rosas (1793–1877) in Argentina,

By the middle of the 19th century, the Industrial Revolution was changing the face and culture of the United States. Demand for raw materials and new inventions was increasing. From 1800-1850, territories claimed by the United States had grown to stretch from the East Coast to the West Coast. The spirit of “Manifest Destiny”, the California Gold Rush, and the promise of rich new land, ripe with raw materials and opportunity drew settlers ever westward. Following the invention of the steam engine, trains were becoming very important to the expansion of civilization and its infrastructure. Trains and the railroads they ran on soon became the lifeblood of industrialized economic development across the country. Public and private partnerships were formed with railroad companies to provide them with vast amounts of investment funding. Within a few decades, the railroad companies and their transcontinental railroads ushered in the Gilded Age and changed American society forever.

Amid the 1800’s, America was experiencing a period of development known as the Industrial Revolution. America was in its first century of being an autonomous and creative nation. One of the greatest commitments to this huge innovative progression was the foundation of the Transcontinental Railroad. The westward expansion designed to be the key to a nation-building project and a change for the United States.[1] The Pacific Railroads cleared the path in which built the remaining railroad tracks connecting the West to the Midwest and East. The Union Pacific Company built from Omaha, Nebraska towards the west meeting up with the Central Pacific Company who started building from Sacramento, California.[2] This

The Transcontinental Railroad once completed, was used to ship goods back and forth to the East and West, and transport people more efficiently. No longer did people have to take boats and ships around the bottom of South America and make that difficult journey. The railroad provided a much faster route, it only took five days to get from San Francisco to New York. America grew smaller as people explored

Latin America went from isolated to connected with the rest of the world during the time period 1450 to 1750 because of colonization by the Europeans. However, the economy, slavery, and the tribal systems stayed the same.

Before the civil war, railroads served local markets, but after some consolidation and the standardization of gauges. They could now serve a national economy. People could now transport goods over longer distances faster. This allowed goods to be sold all across the United States creating a national market, which allowed companies to reach demographics that were previously unavailable. For example, the four trunk lines that connected the Midwest to New England like the Pennsylvania Railroad merged the two markets, which was much faster than the Mississippi. In addition, the transcontinental railroads like the Union Pacific connected the eastern market to the western markets. Now businesses would not have to rely on local populations for profits, which permits those who produce the best goods to sell to the national demand causing prices to go down and revenue to go up. In conclusion, the railroad contributed to the end of economic isolationism within the US and, brought a age of economic

Diaz built the railroads that tied the nation together and provided the vision and the reality of modern economic development (Wasserman, p. 166). In addition to the railroads, two technological innovations spurred mining: the general use of electricity provided light, but more important, powered pumps, trams, and other crucial equipment (Wasserman, p. 175). Mexico was finally becoming the modern, industrialized country that people had envisioned. The railroad and mining brought jobs to Mexico so there were employment opportunities for those who wanted to work. For many Mexicans it meant leaving

Latin America as we know it today has undergone many changes throughout history. The beginning for this time of change was 1808. Spain, the country most widely responsible for the colonization of Latin America, was in trouble with France’s master of conquest, Napoleon Bonaparte. Napolien overthrew the King of Spain and replaced him with his brother, Joseph Bonaparte. The repercusions of this evet rolled through Latin America and primed the atmosphere for revolution. The colonial people of Latin America had no loyalty to the new Jing Joseph. This lack of respect for the new

With the increase in industrialization, particularly rail roads and steam boats, Latin America could efficiently export more goods. The installation of railroads and increased trade stabilized the economy of many countries. As long as Europe and the United States required raw materials, the economy would continue to grow. With the economy growing, political stability followed. This is demonstrated in Chasteen’s essay “Governance did become more orderly. As the profits of the export boom rose, government revenues from import/export taxes rose too…Higher government revenues afforded middle-class people new employment opportunities…Greater stability and prosperity attracted further investment from aboard intensifying trade, and the cycle repeated itself” (Chasteen, 207). As more money flowed into the continent, the more the government improved. Using the available revenue from the export boom, local governments could afford better equipment and put down rebellions with less casualties. The government was better able to provide more individuals with employment opportunities, thus stabilizing the politics in the Spanish Americas.

Transportation was improved. New forms of transportation included steam power, improved roads, railroads, bridges, canals and ships. These new improved mean of transportation allowed people to travel cross country and to ship goods to new markets in a matter of days as opposed to months. The railroads eventually became the nation’s number one transportation system, and remained so until the construction of the interstate highway halfway during the Twentieth century. The late 19th century belonged to the railroads. They were of crucial importance in stimulating economic expansion (American History).