Transcontinental Railroad In Westward Expansion

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During the 1800's America was going through a time of discovery and invention known as the Industrial Revolution. This was when America was in its first century of being an independent nation and was beginning to make the transitions from a "home producing" country to a technological one. The biggest contribution to this significant technological advancement was the establishment of the Transcontinental Railroad. The United States was experiencing a time of change which many thought of as the key to the nation's health and sustainability, the westward expansion. This was the historical development of the United States territory with many people uprooting from the east and settling in the west. Many good things came about during this period; …show more content…
The railroad was the new way to travel, and those who were not willing before were eager to start heading west to settle. People were now seeing the world growing smaller because traveling was becoming possible rather than impossible. This thought of the world becoming smaller stems from the ease of traveling from one side of the nation in one week rather than months The Transcontinental Railroad was the most ambitious engineering projects that helped stimulate America's economy and created efficient transportation which is one of the main reasons for the success in the westward expansion. The railroad offered a new means to transport goods from one coast of the nation to the other in a fast and efficient manner. It also allowed people to make a journey west in weeks that would have otherwise taken months or years. The railroad also provided jobs to immigrants and other people of society who would not have been able to contribute to the economy without that job. The Transcontinental Railroad was the key piece to the success of the Westward Expansion and is one reason why America is what it is