Text1 developments in the United States

UNIT 4

Ex.9. Answer the following questions.

Ex.8. Prove the following statements with the examples from the text.

1. Russia has a great territory.

2. Our country has a highly developed transport system.

3. Railways occupy a special place in this system.

4. Russia has the greatest railway network in the world.

5. Modernization is a priority in the development of railways.

6. Track facilities and safety devices are in the focus of special attention.

1. Why does Russia need a wide and highly developed transport system?

2. Why do railways occupy a special position in this system?

3. What Russian territories have the most significant railway lines?

4. What are the major tendencies of railway construction in Russia nowadays?

5. What is being done to improve the railroad track standards?

6. What safety devices and comfort facilities are widely used on Russian Railways?

Several horse-powered railroads began operating in the Eastern United States in the early 1800's. In 1815, American engineer John Stevens obtained a charter from the state of New Jersey to build a steam railroad across the state. He constructed a circular track near his estate in Hoboken, New Jersey, and built a small steam-powered vehicle to run on it. In 1825, this vehicle made a successful run.

In the late 1820's, the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company of Pennsylvania decided to build a railroad. In 1829, the company ran a locomotive built in England along a section of wooden track. This locomotive, called the Stourbridge Lion, became the first full-sized vehicle to run on a track in North America.

In 1830, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad began service over 13 miles (21 km) of track between Baltimore and Ellicott's Mills (now Ellicott City). The first cars of this railroad were powered by horses. The Baltimore and Ohio also experimented with a car equipped with sails. In the summer of 1830, New York businessman Peter Cooper built a steam locomotive, the Tom Thumb, but it was not a success. In 1831, the railroad began regular passenger service with a locomotive called the York.

Meanwhile, the West Point Foundry of New York had built a steam locomotive for the South Carolina Canal and Railroad Company. In 1830, this vehicle, called the Best Friend of Charleston, pulled a train along 6 miles (10 km) of track between Charleston and Hamburg, South Carolina. This event marked the beginning of regular steam-powered passenger and freight service in the USA.

The number of locomotives and railroads multiplied rapidly in the United States after 1830. The most famous historic locomotives included: the De Witt Clinton on the Mohawk and Hudson Railroad in New York in 1831; the John Bull on the Camden and Amboy Railroad in New Jersey in 1831; the Old Ironsides on the Philadelphia, Germantown, and Norristown Line in Pennsylvania in 1832; the Pontchartrain on the Pontchartrain Railway in Louisiana in 1832. By 1835, more than 200 railroad charters had been granted in 11 states, and over 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of track had been opened for traffic.

Meanwhile, engineers and inventors were developing locomotives especially for the Eastern United States, where roadbeds had many curves. These locomotives had an independent wheeled undercarriage called a leading truck, attached to the vehicle by a center pin, which allowed the truck to swivel. The truck gave the locomotive more flexibility on curves. Most of the new locomotives had a four-wheeled truck and four driving wheels. They became the most common type of US locomotives during the last half of the 1800's.

Railroads were under construction in all states east of the Mississippi River by 1850. Most of these lines were concentrated in the Northeast, and ran only short distances. A network of lines radiated from Boston, New York City, and Philadelphia. Railroads also linked the major cities in the Southeast.

Competition for trade promoted railroad construction in the East. By the early 1850's, four railroads had built rail lines that enabled them to carry freight between the Great Lakes region and the East Coast. In 1853, ten small lines along the Erie Canal joined to form the New York Central Railroad, which provided service between Albany and Buffalo. By 1852, the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Baltimore and Ohio had opened lines to the Ohio River, one of the most important trade routes in the country. Large railroad companies took over many smaller lines and so expanded rapidly.

During 1850's, railroad lines connected Chicago with the Mississippi River, which was a major trade route. The Baltimore and Ohio reached St. Louis on the Mississippi in 1857. Both Chicago and St. Louis became large transportation centers.

In 1850, Congress began granting federal land to develop railroads. Some Government leaders thought that railroads would help to attract settlers to the undeveloped regions of the Midwest and the South. The first grant helped to build a railroad from Chicago at the Great Lakes to Mobile, Alabama, at the Gulf of Mexico. Settlers rushed into the area along the route after the railroad's completion in 1856. The success of the experiment convinced Congress to continue granting federal lands for railroad development. In return, all United States railroads agreed to carry government troops and property at half the standard rates and the mail at 4/5 the standard rates. These rates remained in effect until the mid-1940's.

Railroads continued to expand during the 1860's. They played a major role in the Civil War (1861 – 1865) by moving army and supplies to battle. The South was at disadvantage because it had far fewer railroad tracks and locomotives than the North. After the War, iron and steel bridges were built across such major rivers as the Ohio, the Mississippi, and the Missouri.

In the early 1860's, the US government decided to extend rail lines across the country. The proposed route followed the 42d parallel from Omaha, Nebraska, to Sacramento, California. The Eastern rail lines were to be extended westward from Chicago to meet the new railroad at Omaha. Congress passed the Pacific Railroad Act in 1862. The Act gave two of the companies responsibility for building the railroad. The Union Pacific Railroad (UP) was to start laying the track westward from a point near Omaha. The Central Pacific Railroad (CP) was to lay the track eastward from Sacramento. The US Congress granted both railroads large pieces of land and millions of dollars in government loans.

Work began on the Central Pacific in 1863, and on the Union Pacific in 1865. The railroads faced the gigantic task of crossing the rugged Rockies and the huge towering Sierra Nevada. To obtain the necessary labour, the Central Pacific hired thousands of Chinese immigrants. European immigrants worked on the Union Pacific. On May 10, 1869, the tracks of the two historic railroads finally met at Promontory, Utah. One of the finest UP passenger trains was the Overland Limited. That luxury train, inaugurated in 1890, made its run between Omaha and San Francisco in just 70 hours.

North America became the first continent to have a rail line from coast to coast. But it was just a start: by the end of the 1800's, the United States had already built 5 transcontinental railroad lines.

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