What 2 populations made up the majority of the workforce for the railroad?
While Chinese workers dominated the railroad workforce in the West, most eastern and southern railroad companies relied on Black Americans to do the back-breaking construction work.
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The building of the Transcontinental Railroad relied on the labor of thousands of migrant workers, including Chinese, Irish, and Mormons workers. On the western portion, about 90% of the backbreaking work was done by Chinese migrants.
More Chinese immigrants began arriving in California, and two years later, about 90 percent of the workers were Chinese. Chinese laborers at work on construction for the railroad built across the Sierra Nevada Mountains, circa 1870s. “Hong Kong and China were as close in travel time as the eastern U.S.,” Chang says.
The major groups of immigrants that worked on the transcontinental railroad were from Ireland and China. All immigrants working on the transcontinental railroad were treated equally and with high standards.
Cornelius Vanderbilt gained control of most of the railroad industry. He offered rebates to customers and refused service for people traveling on competing railroad lines. He lowered the rates on his railroad in order to gain more business.
While Chinese workers dominated the railroad workforce in the West, most eastern and southern railroad companies relied on Black Americans to do the back-breaking construction work.
Building the Transcontinental Railroad: How 20,000 Chinese Immigrants Made It Happen. At first railroad companies were reluctant to hire Chinese workers, but the immigrants soon proved to be vital. They toiled through back-breaking labor during both frigid winters and blazing summers.
Chinese immigrants provided much of the labor force in constructing the first Transcontinental Railroad, laying tracks in the most difficult part of the project moving from California to the east. Irish immigrants were vital in it's construction moving westward from Kansas.
Four northern California businessmen formed the Central Pacific Railroad: Leland Stanford, (1824–1893), President; Collis Potter Huntington, (1821–1900), Vice President; Mark Hopkins, (1813–1878), Treasurer; Charles Crocker, (1822–1888), Construction Supervisor.
One of the most frequently asked questions we receive when conducting training on railroading basics is: “Who owns the railroad tracks?” In the United States and Canada, that answer is overwhelmingly the railroads themselves.
There are seven major railroads in the United States (Class I railroads) and over 500 shortline and regional railroads (Class II & Class III railroads). These lines are critical for shippers needing an economical solution to long-haul transportation.