ESPM 50AC Lecture Notes - Lecture 19: Promontory, Utah, Golden Spike, Natural Resource

• School: Berkeley
• Department: Environmental Science, Policy, And Management
• Course: ESPM 50AC
• Professor: k.Spreyer

Document Summary

Lecture 24 the transcontinental railroad and chinese labor. 1863: ground broken in omaha (up) / sacramento (cp) 1869: golden spike is driven at promontory summit, utah. 1880s: second round of construction: northern pacific, southern pacific, great. Financing the railroad - the state and private capital. Railroads in the economy of the american west. Railroad is a direct consume of timbre, iron, steel rails. 3 month travel times new york to sf in 10 days. Financial paradox of railroad building: railroads are needed for economic development in many areas but they will remain not profit until the economic actually developed, great risky investments, profits allow for repaying. Cost: million - average k/mi (price varies depends on area) Federal loans (subsidy to k: federal authorized the establishment of the central pacific to reduce the risk, promise the loan, low cost loan, they offer land to railroad operation. Set up company that the bonds and loans will go to railroad company.