The West The Railroads Made

Includes schedule of the California Zephyr, and brief comments about points of interest along the route from Chicago to San Francisco.

On December 23, 1852, the first train on the first railroad west of the Mississippi River steamed proudly from St. Louis to Cheltenham?the immense distance of five miles. In that moment of exaltation, writes Robert Edgar Riegel, "flags waved, bands played, and orators prophesied the flowering of the West under the beneficent influence of the steam locomotive. For once the orators were right. An epoch was marked. Twenty-five years earlier the musical whistle of the locomotive was as yet unheard in the United States. Twenty-five years later steel tracks spanned the continent from New York to San Francisco." In this account of the railroad conquest of the United States, the author is primarily concerned with the western phase of the story. He follows the Iron Horse west through Indian trouble, labor difficulties, civil war, and farmer disillusionment to the completion of the western railroad net. All aspects of the subject?financial, industrial, engineering, as well as the development of railroad regulation?are covered in this classic work.

The story of the men who build the transcontinental railroad in the 1860's.

“Riveting...A great read, full of colorful characters and outrageous confrontations back when the west was still wild.” —George R.R. Martin A propulsive and panoramic history of one of the most dramatic stories never told—the greatest railroad war of all time, fought by the daring leaders of the Santa Fe and the Rio Grande to seize, control, and create the American West. It is difficult to imagine now, but for all its gorgeous scenery, the American West might have been barren tundra as far as most Americans knew well into the 19th century. While the West was advertised as a paradise on earth to citizens in the East and Midwest, many believed the journey too hazardous to be worthwhile—until 1869, when the first transcontinental railroad changed the face of transportation. Railroad companies soon became the rulers of western expansion, choosing routes, creating brand-new railroad towns, and building up remote settlements like Santa Fe, Albuquerque, San Diego, and El Paso into proper cities. But thinning federal grants left the routes incomplete, an opportunity that two brash new railroad men, armed with private investments and determination to build an empire across the Southwest clear to the Pacific, soon seized, leading to the greatest railroad war in American history. In From the River to the Sea, bestselling author John Sedgwick recounts, in vivid and thrilling detail, the decade-long fight between General William J. Palmer, the Civil War hero leading the “little family” of his Rio Grande, and William Barstow Strong, the hard-nosed manager of the corporate-minded Santa Fe. What begins as an accidental rivalry when the two lines cross in Colorado soon evolves into an all-out battle as each man tries to outdo the other—claiming exclusive routes through mountains, narrow passes, and the richest silver mines in the world; enlisting private armies to protect their land and lawyers to find loopholes; dispatching spies to gain information; and even using the power of the press and incurring the wrath of the God-like Robber Baron Jay Gould—to emerge victorious. By the end of the century, one man will fade into anonymity and disgrace. The other will achieve unparalleled success—and in the process, transform a sleepy backwater of thirty thousand called “Los Angeles” into a booming metropolis that will forever change the United States. Filled with colorful characters and high drama, told at the speed of a locomotive, From the River to the Sea is an unforgettable piece of American history “that seems to demand a big-screen treatment” (The New Yorker).

In a time when the United States could not expand fast enough, railroads became essential for the country to grow.The Transcontinental Railroadnarrates the race to build rail lines into the West for money, land, and fame. Easy-to-read text, vivid images, and helpful back matter give readers a clear look at this subject. Features include a table of contents, maps, a glossary, additional resources, and an index. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Core Library is an imprint of Abdo Publishing, a division of ABDO.