page_title: History of Denver
section_title: The Transcontinental Railroad
hierarchical_section_title: History of Denver / 19th century / The Transcontinental Railroad
caption_attribution_description: English: Front exterior of Union Station in downtown Denver (taken Oct. 11, 2004) © 2004 Matthew Trump
context_page_description: The history of Denver details the history of the City, and County of Denver, Colorado, the United States from its founding in 1858 to modern-day. Located on the banks of the South Platte River close to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, Denver was founded in November 1858 as a gold mining town. The gold quickly dried up and the city moved to become a supply hub for new mines in the mountains. Denver grew rapidly, becoming the new county seat of Arapahoe County and eventually the state capital. Investors from Denver built a rail line from Cheyenne to western Kansas which traveled through Denver, bringing new people and supplies. New roads and improvements to rail and air travel in the early twentieth century made Denver a hub for transportation. Until World War II Denver's economy was dependent mainly on the processing and shipping of minerals and ranch products. With war looming, Denver was in a prime location for more federal activity, being situated far from either coast. After the war, oil and gas companies fueled a skyscraper boom in the downtown area. With the combined spending of the energy companies and the federal government, Denver expanded quickly.
context_section_description: With investment once again flowing into the Denver area transportation became a greater concern. Transporting goods to and from Denver was a large expense, an expense that railroads could alleviate. In 1862 the United States Congress passed the Pacific Railway Act and Coloradans were excited at the prospect of the railroad crossing the Rockies Mountains through Colorado despite the dismal surveys by John C. Frémont and John Williams Gunnison. When the Union Pacific Railroad chose to go north through Cheyenne, Wyoming many at the time expected that Cheyenne would blossom into the major population center of the region. Thomas Durant, vice president of the Union Pacific, pronounced Denver "too dead to bury." Colorado Territorial Governor John Evans declared that "Colorado without railroads is comparatively worthless."
  As a result, Evans, together with other local business leaders, partnered with East Coast investors to form a railroad company that would link Denver and the Colorado Territory with the national rail network. The company was incorporated on November 19, 1867 as the "Denver Pacific Railway and Telegraph Company."  The sense of urgency for the Denver boosters was enhanced by the formation of a rival, the Colorado, Clear Creek and Pacific Railway (later the Colorado Central Railroad), by W.A.H. Loveland and citizens of nearby Golden, with the intention of linking that city directly with Cheyenne and making Golden the natural hub of the territory.
  Within several days, the company sold $300,000 in stock, but were unable to raise further funds to begin construction. The efforts seemed to be on the brink of failure when Evans was able to persuade Congress to grant the company 900,000 acres (3,600 km²) of land on the condition that the company build a line connecting the Union Pacific line in Wyoming with the existing Kansas Pacific line, which then extended only as far west as central Kansas.
  Racing to beat the Golden investors, the company broke ground on its Cheyenne line on May 18, 1868 and took approximately two years to complete. The first train from Cheyenne arrived in Denver on June 24, 1870.  Two months later, in August 1870, the Kansas Pacific completed its line to Denver and the first train arrived from Kansas. With the completion of the Kansas Pacific line to Denver, the Denver Pacific became integral to the first transcontinental rail link between the east and west coasts of America. While the Union Pacific line had been declared finished in 1869 with the Golden spike event in Utah, linking it with the Central Pacific Railroad, passengers were required to disembark the train and cross the Missouri River at Omaha by boat. With the completion of the Denver Pacific line, it was finally possible to embark a train on the east coast and disembark on the west coast.
  The Denver Pacific's rival, the Colorado Central line from Golden, was not completed until 1877. By this time, Denver had established its supremacy over its rival as the population center and capital city of the newly admitted State of Colorado. The railroad brought residents, tourists, and much-needed supplies. In the 1870s, it is estimated that the railroad brought 100 new residents to Denver each day. Population statistics bear this out, for Denver's population soared from 4,759 in 1870 to over 35,000 by 1880. In addition to bringing new residents, it put Denver on the map as a tourist destination and brought 1,067 visitors in its first month of operation. That first month also brought 13,000,000 pounds (5,900,000 kg) of freight. Denver now had the people and supplies it needed to flourish and solidify its dominance in the region.
caption: Front exterior of Union Station in downtown Denver
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