Transcontinental Railroad

The Transcontinental Railroad was a railroad built across the United States of America. Construction started after Abraham Lincoln signed the Pacific Railroad Act of 1862 into law during the American Civil War.     

Most of it was built by the Central Pacific Railroad building east from Sacramento, California, and the Union Pacific Railroad building West from Omaha, Nebraska. The two railroads met at Promontory Summit, Utah on May 10 in the year 1869. Much of it was built by people who came to the U.S. from China and Ireland. It cut the time to go across the United States from months to weeks and later days. At the time of its completion, it was one of the longest railroads in the world. Several other railroads across the continent were built later.

References

Category:Rail transport in the United States