1 / 14

Railroads

Explore the growth of railroads in the US, including Westward Expansion, Manifest Destiny, and the role of immigrants in railroad construction. Learn about the Bessemer Process, standardized time zones, and the social, economic, and political impact of railroads on American society. Understand the challenges and abuses faced during the Railroad Era. Discover the lasting effects of railroads on transportation and commerce.

tcaine
Download Presentation

Railroads

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Railroads Evaluate the growth of railroads and railroad abuses

  2. APK • What methods of Transportation do you use today? • Airplanes • Cars • Skateboards • Feet • Bikes

  3. Westward Expansion • Before and After Civil War • focus on tying nation from Sea to Sea • Manifest Destiny • Control Indians • Force them to move across country • Take land and give it to Americans • Gave Indians land with oil…ooops • Kill buffalo and massacre Indians • Darker skin so inferior class CFU: Was our view of Native Americans the same as Slaves?

  4. Westward Expansion • Government gave land grants to RR • 10 sq miles for every mile of track in a state • 20 sq miles for every mile of track in a territory • RR went to Europe to bring immigrant to US • Sold land for $2-10 an acre • 1880 – 40% of Nebraska were immigrants • 1880 – 70% of Wisconsin & Minnesota were immigrants Pair Share: What would happen to the Mid-west with the massive land grants?

  5. Materials/Manufacturing • Bessemer Process • Quickly produce high quality steel • Takes impurities out of iron by injecting air • Used Civil War Vets, Irish, Chinese, Af. Ams. to build RR • 1888 – 2000 killed & 20,000 injured • First year of record keeping • Disease and accidents CFU: Why were immigrants used over Americans that lived here?

  6. Time & Space • 1869 – C.E. Dowd - divided the Earth into 24 time zones • US got 4 time zones • Standardized travel and life • 1869 - Transcontinental RR linked East & West • 1890 – 180,000 miles of track • 5 transcontinental routes Pair Share: What do you believe the main reason for having standardized time helped with?

  7. Promontory Point, UtahMay 10, 1869

  8. Life • Sold as a dream of • Travel • diverse destination • Romance • Fresh start • George Pullman created a town for his employees • Provided basic needs • Cut pay • Didn’t lower rent • Big riots in 1894 Pair Share: Is this similar to the American Dream

  9. Pullman Car • George Pullman invents a sleeping car known as a Pullman car

  10. Functions of Railroads • Socio-political • Tied sprawling nation together • A communication network • Opened the country • Railroads moved settlers to new locations. • Commercial • Created and serviced a national (and eventually an international) market • Brought raw materials to manufacturers • Took finished goods to consumers • Were huge consumers themselves • Pioneered new management techniques • Unfamiliar items appeared locally. • Mail arrived faster. • Railroads brought new jobs. • Local stores profited from train traffic. • Sales were not limited to local markets. Pair Share: Are these effects still caused by the railroad today, or has it shifted to a new tchnology?

  11. Problems of the Railroad Era • Too many railroads were built. • Over-expansion frequently ended in bankruptcies. • Failures spread economic disaster to workers, businesses, and farmers. • Railroads resorted to discriminatory practices

  12. Closure

More Related