What labor force built the transcontinental railroad?
Chinese workers
“The 150th anniversary is not just about completing a railroad, but the workers involved.” From 1863 and 1869, roughly 15,000 Chinese workers helped build the transcontinental railroad. They were paid less than American workers and lived in tents, while white workers were given accommodation in train cars.
Who Built the transcontinental railroad built?
The Big Four Four northern California businessmen formed the Central Pacific Railroad: Leland Stanford, (1824–1893), President; Collis Potter Huntington, (1821–1900), Vice President; Mark Hopkins, (1813–1878), Treasurer; Charles Crocker, (1822–1888), Construction Supervisor.
Who was the main source of labor for the transcontinental railroad?
Chinese laborers made up a majority of the Central Pacific workforce that built out the transcontinental railroad east from California. The rails they laid eventually met track set down by the Union Pacific, which worked westward. On May 10, 1869, the golden spike was hammered in at Promontory, Utah.
What group of laborers mainly built the transcontinental railroad?
Chinese workers were an essential part of building the Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR), the western section of the first transcontinental railroad across the United States.
How many Chinese died building the railway?
Upward of 15,000 Chinese labourers helped to build the Canadian Pacific Railway. Working in harsh conditions for little pay, these workers suffered greatly and historians estimate that at least 600 died working on the railway.
How many Chinese died in transcontinental railroad?
Hundreds died from explosions, landslides, accidents and disease. And even though they made major contributions to the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad, these 15,000 to 20,000 Chinese immigrants have been largely ignored by history.
When did construction start on the transcontinental railroad?
In July 1865, the Union Pacific began construction on what John Galloway calls, “the greatest engineering feat of the nineteenth century”: The Transcontinental Railroad.
Who are the two companies in the transcontinental railroad?
Two Competing Companies: The Central Pacific and the Union Pacific Railroad
Who was the leader of the transcontinental railroad?
Leland Stanford, president of Central Pacific, former California governor and founder of Stanford University, told Congress in 1865, that the majority of the railroad labor force were Chinese. More Chinese immigrants began arriving in California, and two years later, about 90 percent of the workers were Chinese.
Where did the money come from for the transcontinental railroad?
After years of lobbying for funding for the railroad, two companies, The Union Pacific and the Central Pacific, were provided with grants and land from the Federal Government.