What 2 companies were building the transcontinental railroad?

In 1862 Congress passed the Pacific Railroad Acts which designated the 32nd parallel as the initial transcontinental route and gave huge grants of lands for rights-of-way. The legislation authorized two railroad companies, the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific, to construct the lines.

Where did the 2 railroad companies meet?

As Central Pacific laid tracks eastward, Union Pacific was working westward and the race to Promontory Summit, Utah, where they would eventually meet on May 10, 1869, was on. Judah did not live to see this momentous event.

Where did the two companies meet to connect the two sections of the transcontinental railroad?

Promontory, Utah
On May 10, 1869, the presidents of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads meet in Promontory, Utah, and drive a ceremonial last spike into a rail line that connects their railroads. This made transcontinental railroad travel possible for the first time in U.S. history.

Who were the two companies that built the railroad quizlet?

A train route across the United States, finished in 1869. It was the project of two railroad companies: the Union Pacific built from the east, and the Central Pacific built from the west.

Why did Congress decide to have two companies built the transcontinental railroad?

Connecting the two American coasts made the economic export of Western resources to Eastern markets easier than ever before. The railroad also facilitated westward expansion, escalating conflicts between Native American tribes and settlers who now had easier access to new territories.

Who won the transcontinental railroad race?

By March 4, 1869, when Ulysses S. Grant took office as President, it had turned over $1.4 million to Huntington. When the Warren Commission reached Utah, it found that the Union Pacific was almost to Ogden and had obviously won the race.

What two railroads met at Promontory Point?

From May-December 1869, Promontory was the terminus of the transcontinental railroad (the junction point for Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads).

Who actually drove the golden spike?

Ceremonial spikes were tapped by a special silver spike maul into the ceremonial laurel tie. Dignitaries and workers gathered around the locomotives to watch Central Pacific President Leland Stanford drive the ceremonial gold spike to officially join the two railroads.

Who were the big four in the transcontinental railroad?

Central Pacific Railroad, American railroad company founded in 1861 by a group of California merchants known later as the “Big Four” (Collis P. Huntington, Leland Stanford, Mark Hopkins, and Charles Crocker); they are best remembered for having built part of the first American transcontinental rail line.

What group of people helped build the railroad?

Chinese workers
In addition to Chinese workers and Latter-Day Saints who worked for Central Pacific, Irish immigrants fleeing famine and newly freed slaves laid track across the Great Plains for the Union Pacific Railroad.

Where did the two railroads meet quizlet?

The two lines met in Promontory, Utah in 1869.

Who were the big four of the transcontinental railroad?

Where did the two railroad companies meet to build the transcontinental?

The two railroad companies were scheduled to meet at Promontory Point, Utah and drive in the “golden spike”. A celebration was planned however, rioting Chinese railroad workers rioted against each other over a trivial matter. Two private companies had recruited many Chinese workers to build the transcontinental.

When did the two railroad companies agree to work together?

By early 1869, the companies were working only miles from each other, and in March the newly inaugurated President Ulysses S. Grant announced he would withhold federal funds until the two railroad companies agreed on a meeting point.

How did the building of the transcontinental railroad affect westward expansion?

The building of the transcontinental railroad opened up the American West to more rapid development. With the completion of the track, the travel time for making the 3,000-mile journey across the United States was cut from a matter of months to under a week.

What is the transcontinental railroad summary?

(National Park Service) Transcontinental Railroad summary: The First Transcontinental Railroad was built crossing the western half of America and it was pieced together between 1863 and 1869. It was 1,776 miles long and served for the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the United States to be connected by rail for the first time in history.