Transcontinental Railroad
First Transcontinental Railroad completed in North America
In Promontory Summit, Utah Territory on May 10, 1869, the Central Pacific Railroad Company of California president ceremonially tapped in the last spike connecting Council Bluffs, Iowa to Sacramento, California. Within six months, passengers were traveling coast-to-coast. The resulting railroad connection revolutionized the settlement and economy of the American West. It brought the western states and territories into alignment with the northern Union states and made transporting passengers and goods coast-to-coast considerably quicker, safer and less expensive.
