CHAPTER 5 SECTION 2- THE RAILROADS

Transcontinental Railroad

A train route across the United States, finished in 1869. It was the project of two railroad companies: the Union Pacific built from the east, and the Central Pacific built from the west. The two lines met in Utah. The Central Pacific laborers were predominantly Chinese, and the Union Pacific laborers predominantly Irish. Both groups often worked under harsh conditions.

James J. Hill

Owned the Great Northern Railroad and used no federal land grants or subsidies to do so. Known as an honest businessman.

Robber Barons

Refers to the industrialists or big business owners who gained huge profits by paying their employees extremely low wages. They also drove their competitors out of business by selling their products cheaper than it cost to produce it. Then when they controlled the market, they hiked prices high above original price.

Pacific Railway Act

This act was signed by Abe Lincoln in 1862 to build a railroad that would connect the east US to the west US by two different companies in a race to get to the other and on the way make more money.

Credit Mobilier Scandal

company created to win gov. contract to build transcontinental railroad by giving stock to congressmen then they inflated prices for the RR making congress look the fool

Time zones

developed by the federal government to keep the railways safe and trains on time from town to town.

Land grants

given to RR companies by the federal government so that the companies could sell them and then pay for the construction of the RR's. Became a very corrupt system of fraud and bribery.

Jay Gould

one of the most notoriously corrupt RR owners who was known for manipulating stock. Known as a robber baron.

Cornelius Vanderbilt

one of the most successful RR consolidators; connected RR's from New York to Chicago.

Central Pacific

one of the two companies in charge of building the Transcontinental RR; under the direction of Theodore Judah; had a harder task because they had to cut through the Rocky Mountains; 10,000 Chinese immigrants.

Union Pacific

one of the two companies in charge of building the Transcontinental RR; under the direction of former Union general Granville Dodge; started in Omaha, NB in 1865; included many Civil war vets, criminals, and Irish immigrants.

Promontory Summit (Point), Utah

the place where the Transcontinental RR was completed with the ceremonial golden spikes put into the ground.