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Article: The muscle that built the rail: to complete the transcontinental railroad, two companies hired cheap immigrant labor and raced to lay the most track.(History)
- Article from:
- New York Times Upfront
- Article date:
- September 1, 2003
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 Scholastic, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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On May 10, 1869, a telegraph operator at Promontory, Summit, in what was then Utah Territory, tapped out a single momentous word to the rest of the country: "Done." Two railroads--one under construction from the East, the other from the West--had finally reached their meeting place, and dignitaries were pounding in the last spikes to create America's--and the world's--first transcontinental railroad. In major U.S. cities, crowds cheered the news and the promise of a transportation revolution.
Funded by huge government loan and land giveaways, and built by the muscles and guts of thousands of men, this iron road promised to link the U.S. population and commerce ...