The U. S. Transcontinental Railroad

     Congress began to discuss building a railroad connecting the east and west coasts in the mid-18th century.  Surveys from 1853 to 1855 reported on the terrain and local wildlife to help determine the route, which would later be chosen to follow part of the Oregon Trail.  Still, congress couldn’t decide whether the line should start in a northern or southern city.  In the end, they chose Council Bluffs, Iowa.

When the southern states started seceding from the union in 1861, political deadlock over the route disappeared and president Lincoln signed the Pacific Railroad Act of 1862.  In addition to greenlighting the project, this also created the Union Pacific Railroad Company in the midwest and the Central Pacific Railroad Company out west to build the railroad.  These companies would receive $48,000 in government bonds for every mile of track built, and so were set in competition with each other.  The Central Pacific Railroad Company was the first to break ground in January 1863, hiring Chinese immigrants to build the line.

      The Union Pacific Railroad Company didn’t start work until 1865 due to the Civil War, and when it did get started it employed many former soldiers discharged from both armies, as well as recent Irish immigrants.  In 1869 the two companies met at Promontory Summit in Utah for a ceremony to pound the last spike, signifying the completion of this massive project.  

The 1,912-mile feat had finished, and the journey time from New York to San Francisco dropped from months to days.  Today there are still sections of the railroad in use while others have been long since destroyed.

     Marking the 150th anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad, the U.S. Postal Service commemorated this 19th century marvel with a magnificent set of Forever stamps.   They were issued Friday, May 10, 2019 at 3:30 p.m. Mountain time at the Golden Spike National Historic Site, 6200 North 22300th Street, West Promontory Summit, UT 84037.

     Reminiscent of traditional 19th century oil painting techniques, the three distinct designs of the Transcontinental Railroad Forever stamps evoke the spirit of the era.   Two separate stamps feature the Jupiter and the No. 119 locomotives that powered the trains carrying the officers and guests of the two train companies to the “Golden Spike Ceremony.”   Centered between them, a third stamp portrays the famous golden spike that was a prominent part of the ceremony.