1. Mining and Railroading
19-2
Mining and Railroading

2. Life of a Miner Where - Virginia City, Black Hills, Yukon. Hardships
temperature (150°F)
no ladders – slippery
semi-darkness
lack of air
Non-renewable resource

4. Life Cycle of a Mining Town
Life Cycle of a Mining Town
Discovery of Mineral
Miners arrive and set up tents
Tent City
Merchants arrive to supply miners; build wooden structures
Boom Town
Mineral used up; miners leave; stores close
Ghost Town

8. The Wild West
Few miners ever got rich – most worked for large companies
Lawlessness and disorder in new towns
vigilantes use frontier justice
unfair laws for foreigners
Pollution and deforestation

9. Transcontinental Railroad

10. Ride the Rails Railroad companies race to lay track
Federal government subsidizes railroad companies to speed up construction
Companies received money and land for each mile of railroad completed
Much of the land given to companies belonged to the Native Americans

11. Transcontinental Railroad
Union Pacific built west from Omaha, NE.
Central Pacific built east starting in Sacramento, CA.
Rail lines met at Promontory Point, UT.
Leland Stanford drops in “golden spike”

12. Promontary Point, Utah

14. Officially opened on May 10, 1869
The Golden Spike!
Officially opened on May 10, 1869

15. Railroads’ Effect on Society
Rail lines lead to rapid settlement and statehood for NV, CO, ND, SD, MT, WA, ID, and WY.
Railroads made it possible to get products and people across the country quickly.
Immigrants from Ireland, China, Mexico and African Americans provide labor.