how did the transcontinental railroad affect the western settlement

The completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad

in 1869 had a huge impact on the West. It encouraged further settlement in the West as it made travelling their cheaper and easier. It encouraged further settlement in the West as it made travelling their cheaper and easier.

Full Answer

How did the transcontinental railroad impact the westward expansion?

The historic moment created the first transcontinental railroad, enabling travelers to go from coast to coast in a week's time, making it markedly easier to travel west in search of land for settlement. By 1872, under the Pacific Railroad Act, Congress awarded the railroads over 170 million acres in land grants.

How did railroads help settlers move to the west?

Portraying the West as a land of limitless opportunity, the bureaus offered long-term loans and free transportation to the West. Between 1870 and 1900, not only did the railroads attract settlers from nearby states, but also brought 2.2 million foreign immigrants to the trans-Mississippi West.

How did the westward expansion affect Native Americans?

And the railroad and other rail routes that followed made it easy for large numbers of hunters to travel westward and kill millions of buffalo. That slaughter impacted Native Americans, who had hunted buffalo in moderation, and weakened their resistance to settlement of the west.

What was the impact of the railroad on the country?

The country, from its commerce to the environment to even its concept of time, was profoundly altered after the completion of the railroad's 1,776 miles of track.

How did the Transcontinental Railroad impact the settlement of the West?

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.

What role did railroads play in western settlement?

What role did railroads play in western settlement, industrialization, and agriculture? They allowed goods produced in the west, especially agricultural products like wheat, to be shipped to eastern markets, while also allowing eastern settlers to quickly move into unsettled lands in the west.

Why was the railroad system important to westward expansion?

Why was the Transcontinental Railroad important to westward expansion? The Transcontinental Railroad made it faster to travel east and west and to move goods and food from coast to coast.

Why was the railroad beneficial to America's westward push?

The completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in 1869 had a huge impact on the West. It encouraged further settlement in the West as it made travelling their cheaper and easier. It also encouraged the development of towns along the railroad, as the railroad made the west less isolated.

Which change in the West was brought about by railroad expansion?

Which change in the West was brought about by railroad expansion? The mining and cattle ranching industries increased in the West.

What was the central way that the government supported the railroad and Western settlement?

But perhaps the central way that the federal governments supported the railroads in Western settlement and investment in general was by leading military expeditions against American Indians, rounding them up on ever-smaller reservations and destroying their culture.

What was the effect of the Transcontinental Railroad on California?

The completion of the transcontinental railroad led to heightened racial tensions in California, as white workers from the East Coast and Europe could more easily travel westward where immigrant laborers were prevalent, says Princeton University Assistant Professor of History Beth Lew-Williams, author of The Chinese Must Go: Violence, Exclusion, and the Making of the Alien in America.

How did the railroad affect Native Americans?

And the railroad and other rail routes that followed made it easy for large numbers of hunters to travel westward and kill millions of buffalo. That slaughter impacted Native Americans, who had hunted buffalo in moderation, and weakened their resistance to settlement of the west.

What did the Transcontinental Railroad do?

1. It made the Western U.S. more important. “What the transcontinental railroad did was bring the West into the world, and the world into the West,” explains James P. Ronda, a retired University of Tulsa history professor and co-author, with Carlos Arnaldo Schwantes, of The West the Railroads Made. In particular, it helped turn California ...

How much freight did the Transcontinental Railroad transport?

By 1880, the transcontinental railroad was transporting $50 million worth of freight each year. In addition to transporting western food crops and raw materials to East Coast markets and manufactured goods from East Coast cities to the West Coast, the railroad also facilitated international trade.

How did the Transcontinental Railroad help California?

2. It made commerce possible on a vast scale. By 1880, the transcontinental railroad was transporting $50 million worth of freight each year.

How much did the Transcontinental Railroad cost in the 1860s?

Building of the Transcontinental Railroad, circa 1869. 3. It made travel more affordable. In the 1860s, a six-month stagecoach trip across the U.S. cost $1,000 (about $20,000 in today’s dollars), according to the University of Houston’s Digital History website.

How did the railroad affect the environment?

It took a heavy toll on the environment. The massive amount of wood needed to build the railroad, including railroad ties, support beams for tunnels and bridges, and sheds, necessitated cutting down thousands of trees, which devastated western forests.

What was the purpose of the Transcontinental Railroad?

By 1872, under the Pacific Railroad Act, Congress awarded the railroads over 170 million acres in land grants. The railroads created bureaus and sent agents to the East and to Europe to attract potential settlers on these lands. Portraying the West as a land of limitless opportunity, the bureaus offered long-term loans and free transportation to the West. Between 1870 and 1900, not only did the railroads attract settlers from nearby states, but also brought 2.2 million foreign immigrants to the trans-Mississippi West. Desiring quick payment of loans, railroads encouraged these settlers to grow and sell cash crops.

How many immigrants did the railroads bring to the West?

Between 1870 and 1900, not only did the railroads attract settlers from nearby states, but also brought 2.2 million foreign immigrants to the trans-Mississippi West. Desiring quick payment of loans, railroads encouraged these settlers to grow and sell cash crops.

How many acres did the Pacific Railroad have?

By 1872, under the Pacific Railroad Act, Congress awarded the railroads over 170 million acres in land grants. The railroads created bureaus and sent agents to the East and to Europe to attract potential settlers on these lands.

What was the Westward Expansion?

Westward Expansion (1807-1912): The Transcontinental Railroad and the Admission of Western States | SparkNotes.

What did the Northerners complain about?

Additionally, northerners railed against the legality of slavery in the District of Columbia, and southerners, in turn, complained of northern failure to comply with the Fugitive Slave Law. All of these issues had to be resolved if new states were to enter the Union.