Bellwork

Have you ever heard the term Manifest Destiny? What do you think it means? Examine the Words individually and write them down at the beginning of your notes for today

Expansion after the Mexican War

The Transcontinental Railroad

Review

Texas RevolutionMexican WarWho won?What were the results?

The Gold Rush

● 10 days before the signing of the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, James Marshall discovered gold at John Sutter’s sawmill in Sacramento.

● By 1849, 80,000 people arrived in California in search of gold- half were Americans, half international gold hunters

● Brought a wave of violence to Californiao San Francisco- 500 bars, 1000 gambling dens, burned to

the ground 6x in 18 monthso Thousands of murders- only 1 conviction in the 1850so Xenophobia- hate or distrust of foreigners

The Railroad

New increase in population in California and better access to resources instigated the creation of a transcontinental railroad At this point, it took 5-6 months in a stagecoach to cross the country, and

cost a passenger over $1000 Other options were to go around S. America- 18,000 miles; cross Panama

and catch a ship in the Pacific 2 companies arose to compete- Central Pacific Co. and the Union Pacific Co.

Central Pacific built east from California Union Pacific built west from Nebraska

Railway Document Analysis

In your groups- answer the questions for your document in your notes

Be prepared to share your answer with the class

Additional Questions

What month and year did Congress pass each of these two acts? Why do you think they were passed within months of each other?

In what ways are these acts mutually beneficial both to settlers and the railways?

What other groups are involved that we haven’t discussed?

Progress

2,000 miles of railroad track to lay- many of which over very rugged terrain 1st spike driven in 1863

Union Pacific raced ahead at first- easy, flat terrain Central Pacific had to start in the Sierra Nevada Mountains

Employed mostly Chinese immigrants Chinese would be lowered down in baskets to drill holes for explosives-

then hopefully were pulled up again before the blast Agonizingly slow progress- using black powder and nitroglycerin-

averaged 1 foot per day

CompletionCentral Pacific and Union Pacific Railroadcompanies racedtowards each other- finally meeting in Promontory, Utah on May 10, 1869

Effects of the Railroad

TimetablesCoordinating railroad shipments and departures forced the

US to standardize time zonesTowns sprung up on the Great Plains along the railroad line

Uniting the East and WestMovement of PassengersTrade goods and resources

Closure- Relevance

Answer these questions in your entrance ticket for tomorrowWhy was this so important? ● What new opportunities and challenges was America facing

now?● Name some elements of American society that would be

affected