"Market Day"

In 1815, the first U.S. railroad charter was granted to John Stevens, organizer of the Pennsylvania Railroad, who could not finance his project. Construction of the network began in 1828 and the 13 mile line opened in 1830. That year the country had 23 miles of railroad. Five years later the national total was 1,098 miles and by 1848 it had become 5,996 miles.

Rails then began to reach into the Middle West, connecting the new towns of the Mississippi River valley with eastern seaports. The California gold strike of 1849 and fear that the Northwest might be annexed to Canada greatly stimulated railroad building in the West. The need for a transcontinental line was felt so urgently that construction of the Union Pacific Railroad was begun during the Civil War, when railroad building in the East was at a standstill. Previous construction had an average rate of 316 miles per year. In the 1850s, the annual average was 2000 miles. Federal aid, in the form of grants of public lands bordering railroad routes, was important in fostering the boom. In return, substantial reductions in rates were granted to the government. In 1869, the rails of the Union Pacific, reaching westward from Omaha, Nebraska, joined those of the Central Pacific Railroad, reaching eastward from Sacramento, California, at Promontory, Utah, completing the coast-to-coast connection. In the 1880s, mileage was added at an average rate of more than 7,000 miles a year. Expansion continued through 1910. Railroads peaked in 1916 with 254,251 total miles declining to about 154,000 miles by 1986.

As the rail networks spread, independent railroad companies consolidated. Public sentiment was aroused against the railroads because of their power and influence. In 1887, Congress created the Interstate Commerce Commission to hamper consolidation. U.S. railroads were under federal control during World War I and subject to emergency regulations during World War II, but remained under private ownership. After the nationalization of British railroads in 1947, U.S. railroads and the Canadian Pacific were the only large networks still privately owned.

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