Westward Expansion News 1869
By Ricki Sexton
Rails Across the Nation
1860 -Pony Express: It delivered mail from Missouri to California in just 10 days.
1861 - Telegraph: It put the Pony Express out of business because people could share news and information more quickly using electric signals.
1862-1869 - Transcontinental Railroad: It connected East to West. It carried goods, people, and information across the continent in just a week.
1861 - Telegraph: It put the Pony Express out of business because people could share news and information more quickly using electric signals.
1862-1869 - Transcontinental Railroad: It connected East to West. It carried goods, people, and information across the continent in just a week.
Central Pacific Started in Sacramento, California
About 80% of the Central Pacific workers were Chinese immigrants.
They faced many challenges. They had the difficult job of building in the rugged Sierra Nevada Mountain range in California, and they could not find enough workers.
They faced many challenges. They had the difficult job of building in the rugged Sierra Nevada Mountain range in California, and they could not find enough workers.
Railroad Complete
On May 10, 1869, the tracks of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific met at Promontory Point, Utah Territory. A golden was made to symbolize the success of the project.
Union Pacific Started in Omaha, Nebraska
The workers included Confederate Army soldiers and former enslaved African Americans.
They also faced many challenges. They could not find enough workers, and they had conflict with the Native Americans.
They also faced many challenges. They could not find enough workers, and they had conflict with the Native Americans.
How to Become a Homesteader
The Homestead Act was a law signed in 1862 to people willing to start new farms on the Great Plains. If you were a man over the age of twenty-one or a woman who was the head of the family, you could claim 160 acres of land. You had to..
- Pay a small fee ($10)
- farm your land and live on it for 5 years.
http://youtu.be/Ff6KquLH-y0