What impact did railroads have on cities across the us at the turn of the twentieth century

Since the focus of this work lies on the role the railroads played in the nineteenth century, the events in the twentieth century will be discussed only minimally. For the railroads, this century was a time of more great mergers, more government regulation, more strikes (in 1946 and 1951), considerable competition from other means of transportation, and an emphasis on tourism as far as passenger travel was concerned.

Although the railroads remained America's most important transportation system for the first few decades of the twentieth century, their 'glory days' were over. The railroads did not 'own' the twentieth century like they had owned the late nineteenth. Travel by car, tour bus, and soon, by plane, started the decline of passenger travel, while the railroad industry was also threatened with the emerging economical trucking industry, which promised to take up a large share of the freight business[80].

These years of railroad decline, however, led to a new effort for increased efficiency. Locomotives and equipment were improved, the loading and unloading of freight cars became a science, and mileage was increased per freight car. This was also the age of luxury passenger travel. In 1934 for example, the Union Pacific introduced the Streamliner "City of Salina," an ultramodern, high-speed diesel powered train set which included a coach and a combination coach-buffet. New sleeping cars came with a range of accommodations, including a newly designed roomette, in addition to sections, bedrooms, compartments and drawing rooms. Air-conditioned dining cars used fine china, silver and linen[82].

In 1915, Congress authorized a federal railroad from the Gulf of Alaska to the Yukon River. Woodrow Wilson chose the route from Seward to Fairbanks; Warren Fairbanks drove the symbolic golden spike in 1923. The Alaska Engineering Commission (AEC) supervised forty-five hundred workers on the federal payroll at the height of construction. The AEC also planned, built, and managed the new city of Anchorage from 1915 to 1920. In July 1915, the government auctioned off 655 lots, with strict rules forbidding their development for 'immoral' purposes. Just a few months later, Anchorage already resembled a small town, with retail stores, restaurants and lawyers[83].

The railroads played an important part during World War I and II, transporting supplies and personnel. The position of the railroads at the beginning of WWI was weak. For years, the cost of railroad operation in maintenance, materials, and labor had been increasing. The war brought temporary prosperity with the enormous stimulation of the freight business in 1915 and 1916, but the rising cost of material and higher wages absorbed much of the profits. The railroads could not meet the pressure of war needs. The War Industries Board created a five-member committee, the Railroads War Board, with the task of obtaining cooperation in sharing of equipment, amongst other activities. This voluntary

By the 1960s, the passenger train was rarely considered as a means of travel anymore. In October 1971 Congress passed the Rail Passenger Service Act, which created Amtrak, a private company. On May 1st 1971 it began managing a nation wide rail system dedicated to passenger service[87]. Dee Brown, writer of Hear That Lonesome Whistle Blow (1977), has his own opinion on Amtrak: "� Now only a handful of efficiently operated railroads remain. Most of the passenger traffic has been subsidized by the people's money in a bureaucratic absurdity known as Amtrak, which attempts to run passenger trains over privately owned tracks so worn out that they would not have passed inspection during construction of the first transcontinental railways a century ago[88]". "Today, in the 1970s, Amtrak offers passage from New York to San Francisco in seventy-four hours (if the trains run on time) on an obsolete system that offers neither safety nor elegance[89]". Then again, Brown wrote this over twenty years ago.

By the end of the twentieth century, the emphasis in passenger travel lies mostly on luxury rail journeys for adventurers or railway fanatics. Trips to the Grand Canyon, the American and Canadian Rockies, the Pacific Coast, or scenic tours of Vermont are offered by a variety of companies throughout the country. This is not a twentieth century novelty. Decades earlier, the major western railroads sought to promote parks along their routes as a way of encouraging transcontinental passenger traffic. Railroad tourism characteristically involved delivering hundreds of wealthy travelers to a single passenger depot, from where they traveled by horse and stage to a large, luxurious hotel. The railroad companies spent large sums on advertising and other promotional packages to show Americans the wonders of the western landscape. Places such as Yellowstone, Yosemite, the Grand Canyon, and most other western parks were introduced to the public in this manner[90].

While the twentieth century is still the era of the automobile and the airplane, it is interesting to speculate on what the future may hold. On this point, John Stilgoe, author of Metropolitan Corridor writes, "if the age of the motorcar ends in a succession of fuel shortages, if Americans look once again to the railroad train for swift, reliable, luxurious travel, the corridor will emerge into public view not as wreckage, but as a wildered antique; something to be restored and modified � Once again, Americans will hearken to the locomotive whistle, the sound of the metropolitan corridor.[91]"

It made commerce possible on a vast scale.

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In addition to transporting western food crops and raw materials to East Coast markets and manufactured goods from East Coast cities to the West Coast the railroad also facilitated international trade. … Building of the Transcontinental Railroad circa 1869.

How did the railroad help change the prairie?

The advent of the railroad which brought white settlers to the prairie states by the boxcar-full was directly responsible for the destruction of the prairie grasslands that once covered millions of acres. … In the past few decades great strides have been made to restore prairies by reseeding them with native grasses.

The legislative efforts that resulted in the Pacific Railway Act led to the successful completion of the transcontinental railroad which reduced the travel time across the continent from several months to one week and is considered one of the greatest technological achievements of the 19th century.

What was the impact of the railroad in the industrial Revolution quizlet?

Railways spurred industrial growth by giving manufactures a cheap way transport materials and other finished products. The railroad boom provided jobs for hundreds of people as rail workers and miners. Railway boosted England’s agricultural and fishing industries which could transport their products to distant cities.

What was the biggest impact of the transcontinental railroad quizlet?

this railroad made it easier for people to fulfill Manifest Destiny and also made it easier to transport goods across the country. This method was faster and cheaper than boats and horse carts.

How did railroads impact America?

The first transcontinental line was established in 1869. Eventually railways lowered the cost of transporting many kinds of goods across great distances. These advances in transport helped drive settlement in the western regions of North America. They were also essential to the nation’s industrialization.

Every year railroads save consumers billions of dollars while reducing energy consumption and pollution lowering greenhouse gas emissions cutting highway gridlock and reducing the high costs to taxpayers of highway construction and maintenance. Freight railroads mean more jobs and a stronger economy.

Why was the railroad industry important?

The railroad opened the way for the settlement of the West provided new economic opportunities stimulated the development of town and communities and generally tied the country together.

How did railroads impact westward expansion?

Dreams of a Transcontinental Railroad

During that same period the first settlers began to move westward across the United States this trend increased dramatically after the discovery of gold in California in 1848.

The transcontinental railroad also brought settlers to the frontier. they brought lumber wood people and other necessities. the railroads also brought settlers and miners who laid claim to Native American land. thus weakening the Native American hold on the west.

What impact did railroads have on cities across the United States at the turn of the 20th century?

What impact did railroads have on cities across the United States at the turn of the 20th century? Many cities became industrial centers.

How did the railroad impact the Native American tribes?

The Transcontinental Railroad dramatically altered ecosystems. For instance it brought thousands of hunters who killed the bison Native people relied on. The Cheyenne experience was different. The railroad disrupted intertribal trade on the Plains and thereby broke a core aspect of Cheyenne economic life.

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What changes did railroads bring to American society during the Gilded Age?

Railroads completely transformed the United States socially politically and economically during the Gilded Age. Literally the engine of the new industrialized economy they facilitated the speedy transportation of raw materials and finished goods from coast to coast.

What was the impact of the Pacific Railway Act How did it make change more possible?

Congress responded with the Pacific Railway Act of 1864. The government increased the land grants from 10 to 20 miles issued loan money faster and allowed the companies to keep any timber or minerals such as coal found during construction. The railroads were also able to raise cash by selling their own bonds.

Who benefited from the Pacific Railroad Act?

504) and Pacific Railroad Act of 1866 (14 Stat. 66). The Pacific Railroad Act of 1862 began federal government grant of lands directly to corporations before that act the land grants were made to the states for the benefit of corporations.

Who benefited from the Pacific Railway Act?

This act passed on July 1 1862 provided Federal subsidies in land and loans for the construction of a transcontinental railroad across the United States.

Explanation: This was one major effect that the spread of railroads had throughout Great Britain during the Industrial Revolution. As railroads became more common throughout the country factories benefitted from them. Raw materials could be transported to the factories more easily and cheaply.

What was the economic impact of railroads on the Industrial Revolution?

Railways had a major impact on farming as perishable goods such as dairy products could now be moved long distances before they were inedible. The standard of living rose as a result. New companies formed to both run railways and take advantage of the possibilities and a major new employer was created.

Why was the railroad important to the American Industrial Revolution quizlet?

The development of the railroads was important because it made the movement of goods faster and cheaper. When railroad travel became faster then railroad building boomed. Changes in farming soaring population growth and a demand for workers led masses of people to migrate from farms to cities.

What was one effect of the Transcontinental Railroad?

The completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in 1869 had a huge impact on the West. It encouraged further settlement in the West as it made travelling their cheaper and easier. It also encouraged the development of towns along the railroad as the railroad made the west less isolated.

what effect did the transcontinental railroad have on the culture of Native Americans? It moved settlers west taking their land moving them and promoting buffalo slaughter. Their culture was affected because they were used to being able to roam freely and have plenty of buffalo.

What was an important effect of the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad quizlet?

Goods were easier to ship across the country and commerce became easier. The completion of the Transcontinental Railroad let the world know that America was going to be a world power.

What were the effects of the transportation revolution?

Soon both railroads and canals crisscrossed the states providing a transportation infrastructure that fueled the growth of American commerce. Indeed the transportation revolution led to development in the coal iron and steel industries providing many Americans with new job opportunities.

How did the transportation revolution change America?

America’s economic transformation in the early 1800s was linked to dramatic changes in transportation networks. Construction of roads canals and railroads led to the expansion of markets facilitated the movement of peoples and altered the physical landscape.

The transportation network of the North allowed them to move men and equipment longer distances and with greater speed thus providing them with a significant advantage.

How did transportation change the world?

Standards of living of people around the world radically increased because for the first time trade was easier safer faster more reliable and convenient. Goods could be shipped around the world and traded for other products. … Supersonic transportation will have an equally astounding impact on the world.

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How did railroads help farmers?

Railroads helped farmers by shipping crops to new markets but hurt farmers by charging high shipping rates. … farmers rented land from landowners in return for a share of the crops.

It made travel to the West easier for emigrants whose only options before were wagon trails. Railroads often owned the right-of-way along the tracks thus facilitating the sale of land to potential homeowners. Railroads also made it easier to get mail and consumer goods to people who had moved West.

How did the railroads impact the relationship between eastern cities and the Great Plains?

How did the railroads affect the relationship between eastern cities and the Great Plains? Railroads brought crops and grain to cities in the East and settlers to farms in the Great Plains. The US government gave land to the railroads to help them expand. … Trains from different rail lines could use each other’s tracks.

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