1832: Proponents call for transcontinental railroad
1845: New England merchant and traveler, Asa Whitney begins advocacy for Pacific Railroad
1853: Congress appropriates $150,000 for survey of five routes
1855-1860: 12 volumes of findings prepared for four feasible routes
1861: Central Pacific incorporated in California
July 1862: President Abraham Lincoln signs the Pacific Railroad Act
August 1862: First meeting of Union Pacific commissioners in Chicago
1863: Union Pacific incorporated in New York
1869: First transcontinental railroad completed
1872: Credit Mobilier of America — the independent construction company hired to build the Union Pacific form Council Bluffs, Iowa, to Ogden, Utah — scandal breaks
1887: Pacific Railroad Commission investigates the Pacific Railroad
1888: Commission investigation shows $23.3 million in fraud ($1.17 billion today)
1897: Union Pacific reorganized and rechartered
Interested in learning more about the history of the Transcontinental Railroad? You’ll find it in our special issue, available online.
