5/16 Connecting East and West

Why did people across the United States celebrate when the railroad line connecting the East and West Coasts was finished in 1869?

• Because a new president was elected

• Because it made travel and communication much faster and easier

• Because gold was discovered in Utah

• Because the telegraph line was destroyed

What special items were used to make the final connection of the railroad lines in Utah?

• A silver hammer and a golden rail

• A golden spike from California and a silver spike from Nevada

• A bronze bell and a copper wire

• A wooden plank and an iron nail

Explain why traveling by train was considered a major improvement over previous methods of travel to the West.

• Trains were more colorful than ships or wagons

• Trains could make the journey in less than a week, while ships or wagons could take four months or more

• Trains were more expensive than ships or wagons

• Trains could only carry gold and not people

How did the completion of the railroad line affect the growth and development of the United States?

• It made the country smaller

• It allowed supplies and people to move west more easily, increasing the size and comfort of the country

• It caused people to stop moving west

• It made it harder to get food and supplies

Based on the passage, what can you infer about the impact of the telegraph line being completed at the same time as the railroad?

• It made celebrations quieter

• It helped news about the railroad spread quickly across the country

• It stopped people from traveling by train

• It delayed the completion of the railroad

The US began building the Transcontinental Railroad to connect

• the East Coast with the West Coast

• the North with the South

• The US, Canada, and Mexico

In the 1860s, a railroad was built connecting the East Coast of the United States with the West Coast. What was one important effect of this?

• It took longer to travel from San Francisco to New York
• People did not use any other form of transportation
• It became quicker to travel from San Francisco to New York
• People could now fly by airplane to get to places more quickly

The US began building the Transcontinental Railroad to connect

• the East Coast with the West Coast

• the North with the South

• The US, Canada, and Mexico