Transcontinental Railroad Timeline

(1863 - 1869)

The Transcontinental Railroad was a 1,912-mile continuous railroad line built between 1863 and 1869 that connected the eastern United States with California. Constructed primarily by the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads, it revolutionized transportation, commerce, and westward expansion in America. More Less

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Origins and Planning

Asa Whitney proposes transcontinental railroad to Congress

Jan 1845

New York merchant Asa Whitney petitioned Congress for federal support of a railroad to the Pacific, arguing it would speed trade with Asia and bind the nation together. Though his specific route was never adopted, his campaign kept the idea of a transcontinental railroad before the American public for years.

Image source: Asa Whitney

Theodore Judah surveys the Sierra Nevada

1854

Engineer Theodore Judah conducted detailed surveys through the Sierra Nevada and identified Donner Pass as a feasible rail crossing. His advocacy earned him the nickname 'Crazy Judah' but laid the technical groundwork for the Central Pacific Railroad.

Image source: Theodore Judah

Central Pacific Railroad founded in Sacramento

Jun 28, 1861

Theodore Judah, along with Leland Stanford, Collis Huntington, Mark Hopkins, and Charles Crocker—the 'Big Four'—incorporated the Central Pacific Railroad in Sacramento, California, to build the western portion of the transcontinental line.

Image source: Central Pacific Railroad

Union Pacific Railroad chartered by Congress

Jul 1, 1862

President Abraham Lincoln signed the Pacific Railway Act, chartering the Union Pacific Railroad to build westward from the Missouri River. The act provided land grants and government bonds to finance construction of the first transcontinental railroad.

Pacific Railway Act amended to double land grants

Jul 2, 1864

Congress passed an amendment to the Pacific Railway Act that doubled the land grants per mile of track and expanded government bond subsidies, providing crucial financial incentives that accelerated construction by both railroads.

Image source: Pacific Railroad Acts

Construction

Central Pacific breaks ground in Sacramento

Jan 8, 1863

Governor Leland Stanford turned the first spade of earth for the Central Pacific Railroad in Sacramento, launching construction of the western leg of the line that would climb over the formidable Sierra Nevada mountains.

Union Pacific breaks ground at Omaha

Dec 2, 1863

Ceremonial groundbreaking for the Union Pacific took place at Omaha, Nebraska Territory, marking the official start of construction on the eastern leg of the transcontinental railroad, though serious tracklaying did not begin until 1865.

Image source: Union Pacific Railroad

Chinese workers begin building the Central Pacific

1865

Facing labor shortages, Charles Crocker began hiring Chinese immigrants, who eventually made up roughly 90% of the Central Pacific workforce. Thousands of Chinese laborers performed grueling and dangerous work blasting tunnels and laying track across the Sierra Nevada.

Image source: History of Chinese Americans

Summit Tunnel completed through the Sierra Nevada

Nov 1867

After more than a year of drilling and blasting through solid granite near Donner Pass, Chinese crews completed Summit Tunnel at an elevation of about 7,000 feet, overcoming the greatest engineering obstacle on the Central Pacific's route.

Image source: Donner Pass

Union Pacific reaches Cheyenne

Nov 13, 1867

The Union Pacific's tracks reached Cheyenne in what would become Wyoming Territory, making the new town a vital supply hub and division point as construction pushed toward the Rocky Mountains.

Image source: Cheyenne, Wyoming

Union Pacific crosses Sherman Summit

1868

The Union Pacific climbed over Sherman Summit in the Laramie Range—at 8,242 feet, the highest point on the original transcontinental route—a major milestone in crossing the Rocky Mountains.

Image source: Sherman, Wyoming

Union Pacific reaches Salt Lake City area

Mar 8, 1869

Union Pacific tracks reached Ogden and the Salt Lake Valley, where Brigham Young and Mormon workers had contracted to help grade the line, bringing the eastern railroad within striking distance of the Central Pacific.

Image source: Salt Lake City

Railroads race across Utah toward Promontory

Apr 1869 - May 1869

With government subsidies paid per mile of track, the two companies' graders and tracklayers famously overlapped and worked past each other in northern Utah before Congress and company officials agreed on Promontory Summit as the meeting point.

Image source: Promontory, Utah

Central Pacific completes crossing of the Nevada desert

Apr 1869

After conquering the Sierra Nevada, Central Pacific crews raced across the arid Nevada territory at remarkable speed, sometimes laying several miles of track per day as they pushed eastward toward Utah.

Completion and Golden Spike

Golden Spike ceremony joins the two railroads

May 10, 1869

At Promontory Summit, Utah, Leland Stanford drove a ceremonial golden spike joining the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads, completing the first transcontinental railroad and linking the Atlantic and Pacific coasts by rail.

Image source: Golden spike

First transcontinental passenger train departs Omaha

May 15, 1869

Days after the Golden Spike ceremony, regular transcontinental passenger service began, allowing travelers to cross the continent in about a week instead of months by wagon or ship.

Pullman Palace Car service introduced on the line

1870

Luxurious Pullman sleeping cars were put into service on transcontinental trains, transforming long-distance rail travel into a comfortable experience and attracting wealthy passengers to cross-country journeys.

Image source: Pullman Company

Legacy and Aftermath

Credit Mobilier scandal exposed

Sep 1872

Investigations revealed that the Union Pacific's construction company, Crédit Mobilier of America, had bribed members of Congress with discounted stock to avoid scrutiny of inflated construction costs, becoming one of the era's most notorious corruption scandals.

Image source: Crédit Mobilier scandal

Panic of 1873 triggers Jay Cooke bankruptcy

Sep 18, 1873

The failure of banking house Jay Cooke & Company, heavily invested in the Northern Pacific Railroad, sparked a severe economic depression that halted railroad expansion nationwide and underscored the financial fragility of railroad speculation.

Image source: Panic of 1873

Great Railroad Strike of 1877 disrupts transcontinental traffic

Jul 14, 1877 - Aug 1877

Wage cuts during the depression ignited nationwide railroad strikes, paralyzing freight and passenger service including transcontinental lines and prompting federal intervention against striking workers.

Image source: Great Railroad Strike of 1877

Southern Pacific completes second transcontinental route

Feb 1883

Collis Huntington's Southern Pacific linked New Orleans to California, creating a southern transcontinental route and breaking the original line's monopoly on coast-to-coast rail traffic.

Image source: Transcontinental railroad

Northern Pacific completes third transcontinental route

Sep 8, 1883

The Northern Pacific drove its final spike near Gold Creek, Montana, completing a northern transcontinental line from Lake Superior to Puget Sound after decades of fits and starts.

Image source: Northern Pacific Railway

Santa Fe reaches the West Coast

1885

The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway connected Chicago to San Diego via trackage rights, establishing another major transcontinental corridor and intensifying competition among western railroads.

Image source: Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway

Great Northern Railway completes its transcontinental line

Jan 6, 1893

James J. Hill's Great Northern reached Seattle, completing the final of the five great transcontinental railroads—and notably built without federal land grants.

Image source: Great Northern Railway (U.S.)

Golden Spike centennial celebrated at Promontory

May 10, 1969

A century after the Golden Spike ceremony, thousands gathered at Promontory Summit for reenactments and celebrations, and the site was preserved as Golden Spike National Historic Site.

Image source: Golden Spike National Historical Park

Congress honors Chinese railroad workers

May 2014

The U.S. Senate and House passed resolutions posthumously honoring the approximately 12,000 Chinese workers whose labor was essential to building the Central Pacific, formally acknowledging their long-overlooked contributions.

Image source: First transcontinental railroad

Spike 150 sesquicentennial commemorated

May 10, 2019

The 150th anniversary of the Golden Spike drew large crowds and descendants of railroad workers to Promontory Summit, with ceremonies recognizing the Irish, Chinese, Mormon, and African American laborers who built the railroad.

Key Facts

The Pacific Railway Act of 1862, signed by President Abraham Lincoln, authorized the construction of the transcontinental railroad.
Two companies built the line: the Central Pacific worked eastward from Sacramento, California, while the Union Pacific worked westward from Omaha, Nebraska.
Thousands of Chinese immigrant laborers played a crucial role in building the Central Pacific's route through the Sierra Nevada mountains.
The two lines met at Promontory Summit, Utah, on May 10, 1869, where the ceremonial 'Golden Spike' was driven to mark completion.
The railroad reduced cross-country travel time from several months by wagon to about one week, transforming trade, migration, and communication in the United States.

Source

This Transcontinental Railroad timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

We work hard to keep these timelines accurate, but mistakes do get through. If you spot one, email us at [email protected] and we'll fix it for future visitors.

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