Railroad Barons

• Powerful individuals• Control railroads in

USA• Cornelius Vanderbilt• Leland Stanford• Made lots of money• Aggressive, risk takers• Gave money away

later in life

Railroads Stimulate the Economy

• Created economic links

• Carried natural resources and farm goods

• Carried manufactured goods

• Stimulated steel,iron,lumber, & coal industries

• Created 1,000’s of jobs

Railroad Improvements and Technology

• Standard gauge- all RR’s same width

• Westinghouse-air brakes

• Janney-linking system• Swift-refrigerator cars• Pullman-sleeping car

Competing for Customers

• 2 kinds-passengers and businesses

• Most money from businesses

• Rebates-secret discounts to customers

• Pools-agreements between big RR companies

• Force smaller RR out

• Govn’t tried to stop

Railroads change the USA

• Growth of industry in the West

• Flour milling to Great Plains

• Ag equipment to Midwest

• Beef production -Chicago

Time Zones

• People travel more

• Concerned with hours rather than miles

• Regions of country were united

• 4 time zones in the continental USA created

• Eastern, Central, Mountain, Pacific

Questions

• How did the RR change life for farmers and ranchers?

• How did the RR change industry in the USA?

• How did the RR unite the USA?

• Which change in RR’s was the most important?