There were several technological and non-technological advancements made during the years of 1865 and 1881. The Transcontinental Railroad and the Transatlantic Cable were some of the most prominent of these developments. I’m also going to talk about the Homestead Acts and how the government enticed settlers into new states. I’m going to discuss Steward’s folly and the purchase of Alaska from Russia, but also other new continental states.
The Transcontinental Railroad was actually begun in 1863, but because it was so important, and it wasn’t actually finished until 1866, I determined that it would be good to put it in this paper. The railroad actually began as two railroads; one running from Omaha in the east to the west, and one running from San Francisco in the west to the east. The two railroads met at Promontory Point, Utah on May 10th, 1869. The Transcontinental Railroad had significant implications; you could now travel from one side of the country in a week instead of over three months. That is a drastic improvement. The transcontinental railroad also became a railroad for other railroads to branch out from, connecting and uniting the nation like never before. It also helped new settlers get out into the western territories to settle.
The Transatlantic Cable was also very important to communication. While the first cable didn’t last long, a new one was laid shortly after. The Transatlantic Cable finally allowed for messages to be sent between mainland Europe and America without having to wait for the long shipment via steamboat or sailboat. The cable was laid by steamboats in 1858. While the first cable lasted just three weeks before degrading, a new, much more durable cable was laid in 1866. The first cable was more of a proof of concept than anything else.
The Homestead Acts were an important part of this time period. Again, it wasn’t actually passed during the time-frame of this essay, but it was very important. Abraham Lincoln passed the Homestead Act in 1862. It stated that settlers could get land for free if they lived on it and cultivated it for a certain amount of time. The farmers eventually grew their lands and prospered after they had earned it from the government. This is what caused most of the settling in the great plains in particular.
Lastly, I’m going to discuss Steward’s folly and the addition of new states to the union. If you look at a map of the world, you will see that Russia is actually quite close to North America; hence it makes sense that Russia would have colonized a portion of the land in North America. The United States Treasurer made a deal with the Russian government to purchase this land for fairly cheap prices. This agreement was viewed as a mistake by the people at the time, but it eventually paid off, and the land became the state of Alaska.
Two new states were added to the Union during this time. They were Nebraska and Colorado. Nebraska became the 37th state of the Union on March 1st, 1867. Colorado joined the Union on August 1st, 1876, the 38th state.
Lots of things happened between the years of 1865 and 1881. There was the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad, the most important of the list, the completion of the Transatlantic Cable, allowing for the communication via telegraph across the Atlantic, the influence of the Homestead Acts across the Great Plains, Steward’s folly, and also two new states being admitted to the union.