National Park Service 

U.S. Department of the Interior 
Get Ready to 

Ride the Rails! 

Arctic 

Subarctic 

Northwest 

Coast 

Plateau 

Great Northeast 

Basin California Plains 

Southeast 

Southwest 

 

With this book in your hands, you are ready to 

become a Railroad Explorer. This book will teach 

you about the transcontinental railroad, which 

helped link the United States from coast to coast. 

Follow the directions below: 

1. Complete this book. 

Do your best to fnish as much as you can. 

2. Check your work. 

Show a ranger, a teacher, or another adult 

what you completed. 

3. Become a Railroad Explorer. 

When you are done, fll out the pledge in 

the back of this book. 

Use the map to fll out the statement below. 

My name is . 

I am years old. I am completing this book on lands 

traditionally associated with the tribes. 
 

 

 

Before the transcontinental railroad, it took four to six months Go West! to cross the United States. People had to either travel by ship 

around South America or travel by wagon across the country. The 

transcontinental railroad made it possible for people, as well as 

fruits and vegetables, clothing, and other goods, to move at much 

faster speeds. 

1862 

Pacifc Railroad Act: 

Abraham Lincoln and 

Congress approve 

construction of the 

transcontinental railroad. 

1861 

Tapping Out the Code: 

The transcontinental telegraph line uses Morse 

code to send messages between the east and west 

coasts. 

Civil War Begins: Northern states and southern 

states fght over slavery. This slows progress on 

the railroad. The war ends in 1865. 

1850 

Indian Wars Begin: 

As the government takes land away from Native 

Americans and moves them onto reservations, 

wars break out and continue into the 1890s. 

1848 

Gold Rush! Many 

people travel by wagon 

to California when gold 

is discovered there. 

1826 

First American 

Railroad: 

A horse-drawn 

railroad opens in 

Massachusetts. 

1841 

Oregon Trail: Wagons 

begin taking people 

west in large numbers. 

1869 

East to West: Construction on 

the transcontinental railroad is 

completed connecting the east 

and west coasts. 

1847 

Mormon Pioneers: 

To escape religious 

discrimination, Mormons 

travel by wagon to Utah’s 

Great Salt Lake Valley and 

call it home. 

1890 

Visit a Park: 

People take vacations by train to 

see new national parks in the west, 

such as Yosemite. 

Show What You Know 

Many events happened before the 

transcontinental railroad was built. 

1. Brigham Young and the frst 

Mormon settlers arrived in 

. 

2. 

was discovered in California in 1848. 

3. The 

were conficts between tribes and 

the government as the government 

took tribal lands and moved Native 

Americans to reservations. 

4. Beginning in 1861, northern and 

southern states fought over slavery 

during the . 

Check your answers 

on the back cover. 
Many people worked to build the transcontinental 

railroad. Workers faced bad weather, dangerous work, 

long hours, and difcult tasks, such as lifting heavy iron 

rails, driving spikes, and tunneling through mountains. 

Despite these hazards, a job meant earning money and 

Meet the 

Builders gave workers a chance for a better life. 

Civil War Veterans and Freed Slaves 

Union, Confederate, and black 

Americans (many of them freed slaves) 

worked to build the Union Pacifc 

Railroad. When the war ended, the 

railroad provided jobs.Men could work 

as surveyors, graders, or track layers. 

Courtesy of J. Willard Marriott LibraryUniversity of Utah 

European Immigrants 

Many Irish, German, and other 

European immigrants worked 

for the Union Pacifc Railroad as 

graders who leveled the earth so 

that tracks could be built across 

the Great Plains. 

Mormon Settlers 

As the railroad went through Utah, 

Mormons went to work for the 

railroad because they knew the land 

so well. They worked as surveyors 

who recorded the locations of rivers, 

mountains, and valleys. 

Chinese Immigrants 

Due to their engineering and 

explosives experience, Chinese 

immigrants did the dangerous work 

of blasting through the Sierra Nevada 

Mountains, which had some of the 

hardest rock imaginable. Sometimes 

workers could only tunnel through 

eight inches of solid granite a day. 

Thinking Question 

How far would you move for a 

job? What type of railroad work is 

interesting to you? 
Could You Build a Railroad? 

Draw a line from the tool to its purpose. Check your answers on the back cover. 

ties: support the rails 

maul: used to drive 

spikes into the ties; a 

type of sledgehammer 

spikes: hold the rails to the ties 

rail: guides the train’s wheels 

horse-drawn buck scraper: 

used to level the ground; 

a horse pulled the bucket 

forward to move dirt and rock 

1. First the land had to be surveyed, or 

investigated, to determine if tunnels or 

bridges would be necessary. What tool did 

the surveyors use? 

2. The graders were the frst group of 

workers out on the railroad. If they had to 

create a tunnel, what tool would they use 

to drill holes for blasting through rock? 

3. Graders would create the railroad bed. 

What tool did they use to remove large 

amounts of rock, dirt, and debris? Hint: 

They also needed a horse to use

 this tool. 

4. The track layers followed the graders. 

What did the track layers put down to 

support the rails? 

5. When the ties were in place, the railroad 

line looked like a giant ladder. What did 

track layers put on top of the ties? 

6. What attached the rails to each other? 

7. For the last step, what two objects did 

railroad workers use to attach the rails 

to the ties? Hint: One tool was used for 

pounding. 

fshplates: connect the 

rails together 

rock drill: used to create a 

hole that would be flled 

with explosive powder; 

once ignited, this powder 

would blow up rock to 

make way for construction; 

one or two men would 

drive this drill into rock 

with a sledgehammer 

transit: used to 

survey the land 

D

ID

YOU KNOW? 

The “clickety clack” sound 

you used to hear when a train 

came down the track was due 

to the joints that were held 

together by the fshplates. 
 

Lost Homelands 

Native Americans were the frst people to live in America. 

There were hundreds of tribes throughout the United 

States. Each tribe had its own customs and language. 

When settlers started moving west, there were conficts 

about who owned the land. 

The transcontinental railroad was built through Native 

American lands. The government determined the railroad 

route, despite treaties that said the land belonged to the 

Native Americans. 

Native Americans tried to resist these changes. They fought 

for their lands, destroyed tracks, and derailed trains. 

Eventually, the government sent troops to remove them 

from their traditional lands to reservations. 

Thinking Question 

The United States government broke its promise 

when it took back land that was promised to Native 

Americans. Has anyone ever broken a promise to 

you? How did it make you feel? 

Key Events in the Indian Wars 

1864 1867 1876 1890 

Sand Creek Massacre: Medicine Lodge Treaty Battle of the Little Wounded Knee Massacre: 

Government forces attack (The Reservation Act): Bighorn: In response to This was a battle between 

a Cheyenne and Arapaho This peace agreement sets the ongoing loss of land, federal troops and American 

encampment along up reservations for the the Lakota, Northern Indians of the Lakota tribe. 

Sand Creek. tribes. Though the treaty is Cheyenne, and Arapaho 

adopted, Congress soon fght and defeat the 

breaks the treaty to make U.S. Army’s 7th 

reservations smaller. Cavalry Regiment. 
B Hide 

A Horns 

D Stomach 

and Bladder 

C Sinew 

(fibers that 

tie bones 

to muscle) 

Where Have 

All the Bison Gone? 

Native Americans relied on bison for food, clothing, and 

shelter. They even made tools out of bison bones and 

horns. No part of the animal was wasted. 

When the transcontinental railroad was built, bison 

began to scatter. People shot the animals for sport. Herds 

began to get smaller and smaller. Before the railroad, 

there were 60 million bison in North America. By the late 

1800s, the number was less than 1,000. 

Map showing range history 

Native Americans needed bison to survive. Many 

people faced starvation without the bison. Have 

you ever been hungry? How would you survive if 

you lost your food supply? 

Thinking Question 

Match the bison parts to their uses by 

writing the correct letter in the blank. 

Spoons, scoops, and cups 

Bow string and thread 

Clothing, blankets, tipi covers 

Fuel to burn in fres 

E Bones 

Canteens, water holders 

Tools and weapons 

F Dried Grassy Dung Check your answers 

or “Buffalo Chips” on the back cover. 

of bison in North America 

Original range Pre-1800: 60,000,000 Bison 

Range as of 1870: 5,500,000 Bison 

Range as of 1889: 541 Bison 
Let’s Connect the U.S. 

Trace the line from New York 

City to San Francisco. What 

major cities are on this route? 

D

ID

YOU KNOW? 

To ride the railroad from 

New York City to San Francisco 

took about a week and covered 

nearly 3,400 miles. 

Railroad workers built trestles 

and used earthen structures to 

cross large ravines, which were 

among the biggest challenges 

the builders faced. 

The Civil War delayed construction. 
Across Rivers and Through Mountains 

The people building 

the railroad had many 

challenges. Can you 

identify some of these 

challenges on the map? 

Type an X on the ones 

you fnd. 

The Central Lowlands and 

the Great Plains extend 

from the Missouri River 

over 500 miles to the 

eastern base of the Black 

Hills. During the summer 

months, this area is hot and 

very dry. In the winter, it 

can be very cold. 

The Black Hills of Wyoming, 

now called the Laramie 

Mountains, are part of the 

Rocky Mountains. Can you 

imagine building a railroad 

over a mountain? 

The high rolling plains 

of the Wyoming Basin 

challenged builders to fnd 

the fattest route. 

Crossing the Wasatch 

Mountains, Union Pacifc 

workers encountered 

diffcult terrain. This 

required building 

tunnels to complete the 

transcontinental railroad 

in Utah. 

Railroad builders decided 

to go around the Great 

Salt Lake, a body of water 

Promontory Summit is where the Union The railroad crossed American about eighty miles in 

Pacifc Railroad met the Central Pacifc Indian homelands. length. 

In the Sierra Nevada 

Mountains, builders found 

heavy snow, 

hard granite rock, 

and steep ravines. 

Railroad. This is where builders drove a fnal 

spike to connect the country by rail. 
Steam locomotives are big machines that do a Choo Choo! simple job. Tey make steam. Te locomotive 

needs fuel (wood or coal), heat, and water to 

make steam. Tis steam provides all the power 

necessary to move an enormous train. 

1 Tender 2 Firebox 3 Boiler 

Follow the numbers to see 

what happens inside a 

steam-powered locomotive. 

4 Pistons 

Courtesy Steamtown National Historic Site 

The tender is attached 

to the engine and carries 

the water and fuel that 

powers the locomotive. 

One person, called the 

“freman,” shovels fuel 

into the locomotive’s 

frebox, where a small 

fre burns the fuel and 

produces a lot of heat! 

Water is pumped into The steam is then directed 

the locomotive’s boiler. through pipes to the 

As the water warms, pistons that move the 

steam is produced. wheels and pull the train. 

D

ID

YOU KNOW? 

Each town used to have its 

own time based on local 

sunrise and sunset. Can you 

imagine the confusion? 

To solve this problem, railroads 

If it is 8 AM in San Francisco, 

what time is it in New York? 

As steam is released from the 

exhaust, it makes a “choo” 

sound. This is a different sound 

from the train’s warning whistle. 

Try releasing the sound “choo” 

from your mouth. See how high, 

low, long, and short you can 

make the sound. 

New York 

San Francisco 

began using time zones in 

the 1870s. In 1883, time zones 

were adopted nationwide. 

Check your answer on the back cover. 
Got the Message? 

Morse code is made of dots and dashes that are tapped out in short and 

long signals. These signals stand for individual letters and numbers. Once 

the transcontinental railroad was built, railroad workers used the telegraph 

to communicate train arrival and departure times. This allowed the 

railroads to safely schedule more trains to move people and goods quickly. 

D

ID

YOU KNOW? 

Before the telegraph line, 

which was completed in 1861, 

the only way to send a message 

across the United States was by 

Pony Express. Horseback riders 

would race across the United States. 

Still, it took them ten days 

to take a message from 

Missouri to California. 

At Promontory Summit, May 10, 1869, a 

crowd gathered to honor the completion 

of the transcontinental railroad. After 

ceremoniously tapping a golden spike 

and then removing it, workers drove a 

fnal iron spike into the last tie. 

Telegraph wires had been attached 

to both the spike and the maul. This 

allowed reporters in cities and towns 

across the nation to hear the exact 

moment our country was connected 

by rail. To see the location where the 

railroad was completed, visit Golden 

Spike National Historical Park. 

Try Morse Code 

Can you decipher this message in Morse code? 

Check your answer on the back cover. 
 

 

All Aboard! 

Not long after the transcontinental railroad 

was completed, many people left their homes 

in Europe in search of a better life in the United 

States. They traveled by ship to join family or 

friends already living here. Once immigrants 

arrived on the east coast, they would continue 

their journey by train. Often new immigrants 

would go from cities to farms packed into 

immigrant cars. 

Imagine what it would be like to move from your home 

and travel to live in another place. Draw one item you 

would need on your journey. 

Plan a Trip 

Use the railroad fyer to help you 

calculate the answers to these questions. 

How much would it cost to travel 

from Chicago to Sacramento? 

How much would it cost to travel 

from St. Louis to Promontory? 

How much would it cost to travel 

from Chicago to Council Bluffs/Omaha 

and back to Chicago? 

Check your answers 

on the back cover. 

Chicago to 

Council Bluffs/Omaha

St. Louis to 

Council Bluffs/Omaha 

Council Bluffs/Omaha 

to Promontory 

Council Bluffs/Omaha

to Sacramento 

$ 42.00

$ 20.00

$ 81.50

$ 131.50

Eventually, people traveled 

by train for vacations. The 

railroad opened a new 

part of the United States 

to a variety of people. 

Travelers would spot a 

railroad fyer, dream about 

where they wanted to go, 

choose a destination, and 

then purchase a ticket. 

Often the destinations 

were places of interest that 

people heard about, such 

as tourist attractions or 

national parks. 
Buy a House by Mail, 

Delivered by Rail 

Before railroads, moving products long distances was 

difcult. Most people got their food, clothing, building 

supplies, and other goods within a few miles of their homes. 

With the ever expanding railroad network came the 

possibility of ordering nearly anything by mail. Railway post 

ofce cars picked up and delivered mail to every community 

along the railroad line. This made it possible to deliver 

goods to nearly anywhere in the country. 

Sears & Roebuck and Montgomery Ward ofered catalogues 

flled with everything from socks and shirts, to dresses and 

coats, to dishes and dining room tables. People could mail 

order a bed to complete a bedroom suite. They could even 

select a house from a catalogue, order it by mail, and it 

would arrive by train. Then they just followed the directions 

to put it together. 

Items Moved by Rail: How many can you fnd? 

Can you match each item with the state it comes from? 

Flour

Cloth

California 

Minnesota 

Florida 

Massachusetts 

Wisconsin 

Ohio 

Word List: 

bag, bathtub, bed, 

blankets, books, 

bridles, butter, 

candy, cereal, 

chains, clock, 

clothes, couch, 

double boilers, 

dresser, fowers, 

four, glasses, hair 

curlers, herbs, 

hoe, honey, 

horses, house, 

leggings, lock, 

lumber, magazine, 

mail, mattress, 

nuts, oil, pans, 

piano, pies, quilt, 

raisins, roof 

sheets, shingles, 

shirt, shoes, 

shovels, sink, 

spices, spikes, 

sweets, table, tar, 

trumpet, vase 

violin, white four 
Railroad Safety 

Need to Cross the Tracks? 

Always expect a train. Look both ways before crossing. Never walk near railroad tracks, or in areas that 

are not designated railroad crossings. Never cross the tracks when the signal lights are 

fashing and the safety gates are lowered. Avoid distractions including loud music, texting, 

or talking on a phone near railroads. Only cross the tracks at railroad crossings, located 

where streets intersect the tracks. 

Study this picture. Can you circle two safe behaviors and cross out two unsafe behaviors? 

Check your answers on the back cover. 
 

 

_______________________________________________________ ____________________ 

Railroad Explorer Pledge 

I ___________________________________________________________________(print your name) 

promise to stop, look, and listen at railroad crossings. I also promise to teach others about 

the ways the transcontinental railroad changed the United States and the technology and 

cultures that contributed to its construction. 

I will also continue to explore my national parks by traveling throughout the country and 

researching the history of the different sites I visit. 

Congratulations! You are now a Junior Ranger Railroad Explorer. 

Signature Date 

Find your next adventure at 

nps.gov/kids 
Answer Key Thank You 

Go West! 

1. Utah’s Great Salt Lake Valley 

2. Gold 3. Indian Wars 4. Civil War 

Could You Build a Railroad 

1. Transit 2. Rock drill 3. Horse-drawn 

buck scraper 4. Ties 5. Rails 

6. Fishplates 7. Maul and spikes 

Where Have All the Bison Gone? 

A, C, B, F, D, E 

Choo Choo! 

11 AM 

Got the Message? 

Golden Spike 

All Aboard! 

$173.50, $101.50, $84 

Buy a House by Mail, 

Delivered by Rail 

Orange: Florida, Raisins: California, 

Flour: Minnesota, Cloth: Massachusetts, 

Cheese: Wisconsin, House: Ohio 

Railroad Safety 

SAFE: The family with the dog is waiting at 

the railroad crossing for the train to pass. 

SAFE: The woman in the dress is also 

waiting at the railroad crossing for the 

train to pass. 

UNSAFE: The boy with the headphones is 

walking along the railroad tracks and does 

not hear or see the train. 

UNSAFE: The person on the bicycle is 

crossing the tracks when the signal lights 

are fashing and the safety gates 

are lowered. 

This Junior Ranger Explorer Book on the 

transcontinental railroad was produced by 

the National Park Service with support 

from the Union Pacifc Railroad 

and the National Park Foundation.