Pacific Railway Acts

1800s, but that tree bore no fruit until President Abraham Lincoln signed the Railway Act of 1862. This piece of legislation was a landmark for the United States, as it gave the financial responsibility of the railroad to the federal government. The Railway Act of 1862 also gave two companies the task of constructing and operating the Transcontinental railroad, these companies being the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific, respectively. In an article written for The Journal of Economic History, author

on to the United States increasing railroad system. A large portion of the growth can be attributed to the building of the transcontinental railroads. In 1862, Congress passed the Pacific Railway Act, which authorized the Union Pacific Railway Company and Central Pacific to complete a railroad all the way to the Pacific Ocean. One company started on the West Coast and the other one started on the East Coast. The first transcontinental railroad was completed on May 19, 1869. Both lines of the railroad

When the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) first started they hired thousands of Chinese workers to build their railways. They treated these workers terribly but by the pre Second World War period the railway industry was one of the most unionized industries in North America. In Canada most skilled and semi-skilled railway workers were covered by union contracts in the 1920s and 1930s. During this time the Canadian railway work force was comprised of long term employees to a much greater extent than

the west. Much of the east coast was crowded and overpopulated with lack of opportunity. The land east of the Mississippi River appealed to these due to the discovery of gold and spacious fertile land to build ranches and grow crops. The Homestead Act of 1862 entitled these new settlers one hundred and sixty acres of land for a small fee with the agreement the land would be improved and maintained to occupy crops and raise cattle within the 5 years. Once the 5 years were up and these challenges were

According to Deverell and White, “With the admission of the State of California to the Union in 1850, the Western boundary of the American Frontier...had reached the Pacific Ocean.” (568). Settlers started moving West even before the civil war started, but a majority of them moved after the civil war ended. A popular way to travel in the west was by railroad, there was not a ton of railroads, just a couple small ones. Soon after more settlers started moving west the need for a transcontinental railroad

not been for the Pacific Rail Way Act in 1862, we wouldn’t have to option to travel by train. This act affected today's railroads greatly for had it not been for the Pacific Rail Way Act, we wouldn’t have the transcontinental railroad and we wouldn’t be able to travel by train today. The interest was high for having a railroad that traveled across the states, having a railroad would not only allow for more trading and also more treaties to be made. When the Pacific Rail Way Act was in full swing

on to the United States increasing railroad system. A large portion of the growth can be attributed to the building of the transcontinental railroads. In 1862, Congress passed the Pacific Railway Act, which authorized the Union Pacific Railway Company and Central Pacific to complete a railroad all the way to the Pacific Ocean. One company started on the West Coast and the other one started on the East Coast. The first transcontinental railroad was completed on May 19, 1869. Both lines of the railroad

platform which was based on the American System. The Republican platform of 1860 was centered on encouraging economic growth and developing a national economy. A few specific policies that the Republicans passed were the Pacific Railway Act, the Morill Tariff, and the Morill Land Grant Act. Each of these three policies were aimed at encouraging economic growth in our nation. The republicans passed many laws with the sole purpose of encouraging economic growth and developing a strong economy. The US government

The Transcontinental Railroad was a great engineering achievement that brought a more efficient means of transportation from the Eastern United States to the Western United States. There were many challenges for the development of a project that everyone agreed was necessary for the development of the country. These challenges included a nation that was divided by the Civil War, as well as how such a project could be financed and planned for. The completion of the Transcontinental Railroad rapidly

7-1 Moving West People could obtain land by applying with the Homestead Act after farming the land for five years. Water rights allowed all farmers to get water for crops and consumption. These water rights helped people work the prairie and farm. The government offered cheap land and property rights in the East, along with funding railroads that headed West. This government aid acted as a strong incentive to make people move west. The government gave land to homesteaders if they could successfully