#transcontinental150

On this day in 1869, the eastbound and westbound railroad tracks met at Utah's Promontory Summit, marking the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad. Though it remains a monumental moment in history, many Americans felt the railroad created a new empire, ruled by "masters of the iron horse rather than the people."

In honor of today’s 150th anniversary of the Transcontinental Railroad, a page from the catalog featuring the dioramas once displayed at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. A few of these dioramas can still be seen in the museum’s “Becoming LA” exhibit, but not sure if this one is out or in storage. Today’s Los Angeles Times features an important article describing the critical role the Chinese played in connecting the East and West Coasts through the transcontinental railroad. An excerpt:

As they approached the meeting point with the Union Pacific, thousands of them laid down a phenomenal 10 miles of track in less than 24 hours, a record that has never been equaled. A Civil War officer who witnessed the drama declared that the Chinese were “just like an army marching over the ground and leaving the track behind.”