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Transcontinental Railroad Proposal
Asa Whitney recommended that congress funds a continental railroad, but the proposal went no where. -
Judah and the Big Four
Judah and the Big Four form the Central Pacific Railroad Company. -
Central Pacific Railroad
A groundbreaking ceremony for the Central Pacific is held. The Central Pacific Railroad lays track eastward from Sacramento, California. -
Union Pacific Lays First Rail
The Union Pacific Railroad lays westward form Omaha, Nebraska. -
Chinese Railroad Strike
Chinese workers on the Central Pacific go on strike asking for better hours and more pay causing the work on the Sierra tunnels to come to a stop. The strike didn't last very long and the Chinese workers went back to work with the same pay and hours. -
Summit Tunnel
Central Pacific workers us nitroglycerin to complete the long Summit Tunnel that took 15 months to complete. -
Sierra Nevada Mountain Range
After crossing the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the first passenger train from Sacramento arrives in Reno, NV. -
Highest Elevation
The Union Pacific line crosses the 8,200 foot Sherman Summit in Wyoming. This marks the highest point of elevation either line crossed. -
Golden Spike
The Union Pacific and Central Pacific lines join. The last spike is driven at a ceremony at Promontory, Utah.
