The transcontinental railroad is a system of railroads that connects the eastern and western parts of the United states. it was built from 1863 to 1869 and paved the way for cross country travel. Margret Irving Carrington once said “with only a single wire to underlie the Pacific, the whole earth will become as a whispering gallery, wherein all nations, by one electric pulsation, may throb in unison, and the continent shall tremble with the rumbling of wheels that swiftly and without interruption or delay transport its gospel and commerce.” By having a railroad system that stretched approximately 1,912 miles, millions of Americans now had the opportunity to travel to new places that they've never seen before. This was a huge step forward in progress but the railroad came with some drawbacks. Railroads were the biggest consumers of wood and coal during the late 19th century. this lead to a lot of deforestation and pollution. The California State Board of Agriculture estimated that one third of California’s forests have been cut down due to railroads. Deforestation wasn't the only drawback. The railroad system at that time was not the safest place to work. Railroad companies did not do the best job protecting their employees. For example in 1889, 2,000 men were killed and over 20,000 were hurt at the line of duty. A lot of the injuries were caused from daily tasks that were performed by everyone. Since railroads were new and popular at the time, there was a lot of money to be made. Bosses would treat workers very poorly and pay was not adequate. All the bosses cared about was making the most money. Although the transcontinental railroad has created many opportunities for us, we have to take in consideration the negatives as well.
What caught my eye at first when I skimmed through this was that the railroad system at that time was not the safest place to work. Also all the bosses cared about was making the most money. These were two interesting pieces, very different from my blog. I think these are two facts that a lot of people don't realize because historians and educators really focus more on the fact that the transcontinental was a game changer for America and the work force.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your blog post. You mentioned the working conditions and the time simultaneity a lines with the start of labor unions. This was right before journalist started to expose the working conditions in America.
ReplyDelete