Transcript Industrial Revolution Railroads PowerPoint

Industrial Revolution
THE RAILROADS
Railroad Industry
• The first major business of the U.S. was the
railroads.
• The railroad industry boomed after the Civil War.
• Railroads were also the first businesses to begin
consolidation, or combining smaller companies
into one larger company.
• Consolidation helped eliminate competition in an
industry and allowed the business to charge higher
rates.
RR Critical Thinking
• How did railroad expansion lead to
industrial growth?
• Why was it important for railroads to
connect to the West?
Pros of the
Railroads
• Transportation
– Faster
– Go places steamboats
and horses could not
go.
– Move goods.
• Time Zones
• Promoted Trade
Cons of the
Railroads
• Poor working
conditions for railroad
employees.
• Corruption
– Credit Mobilier
– Selling land grants
– Fixed shipping rates
Railroad Working Conditions
• Blizzards in
mountains
• Heat in deserts
• Angry Native
Americans
• Rough, Dirty,
Dangerous
• Gambling, Fighting
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Civil War Veterans
Irish immigrants
Miners and farmers
Ex-convicts
Chinese Immigrants
(Central Pacific)
Transcontinental Railroad
• Pacific Railway Act- RR boom began in
1862 with the signing of the act by
President Abe Lincoln.
• Act led to construction of railroad by two
corporations. Union Pacific and Central
Pacific
• To encourage construction, the
government offered land to each company
Completion of Trans RR
• Completed in 4 years
• The Central Pacific laid 688 miles of track.
The Union Pacific laid 1,086 miles.
• May 10, 1869 in Promontory Summit,
Utah. The last spikes were hammered in
to join the 2 rails.
Credit Mobilier
• Construction company formed by
stockholders of the Union Pacific Railroad.
• They charged two or three times what it
cost to lay track and pocketed the profits.
• Many influential members of the Grant
Administration were involved.
• $23 million was pocketed in the scam.
Impact of Railroads
• Railroads provide transportation, link to the
west, jobs, and a way to unify the country.
• Railroads were full of corruption and abuse
by powerful owners and operators.
Notebook Activity
• Pretend you are a worker on the
Transcontinental Railroad. Write a letter to
a friend or family member back home
describing a day at work.
• Pretend you are an employee for one of
the major rail companies. Your job is to
write an advertisement to recruit workers
for your corporation.
LAND GRANTS
PRIVATE
INVESTMENTS
How Railroads
were Financed
PROVIDING LAND
GENERATED
REVENUE
FROM
OPERATIONS