Railroads
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Railroads have been around for almost two hundred years. Between 1820 and 1850 the first railroads began to appear and the need for the further development became apparent. America had just gone through an era of canal making; and now with the canals not in total operation, railroads began to thrive and take jobs that would once have gone to the canals.
However, it was not easy for the railroad industry to promote their innovative new mode of transportation. With vision and ingenuity, the pioneers of the early American railroads were able to surmount all obstacles that stood in their way and led the Nation into a “transportation revolution.”
Early American Railroads
The history of railroad development in America was heavily influenced by the industry in England. Attempts to develop the steam engine began as early as 1813. In 1814 George Stephenson developed the first commercially feasible locomotive. From 1820 to 1825 Mr. Stephenson worked on further developing the engines and their ability to haul cargo and, eventually, passengers. Many railroad companies were established in England during this time period. The Liverpool and Manchester Railroad became the first common carrier railroad in the world.
Americas First Railroads
Before all of the new engines from Europe came to America, the railroad industry was very primitive. In fact the first railroad in America was only three miles long. It was basically a mining track from Quincy, Massachusetts to the Neponset River. The rails were made of pine covered by oak which was in turn covered by a flat iron bar. Construction of this railroad commenced in 1826 and was completed in 1827. The second railroad was started in January of 1827 and completed in May of the same year. The tracks were used for a coal operation. The tracks only went a short distance and worked by gravity and the force of mules.
Even before these early railroads, Colonel Stevens had suggested that he could build a railroad at less cost in place of what was to be the Erie Canal. Along with early railroads, the early ancestors of the locomotives were also very primitive. As said earlier, the carts were either horse drawn or worked on a system utilizing gravity.
Pioneers of the Early Railroads
In the early 1820s Americas major mode of transportation of people and goods were canals and stagecoaches. Even before 1820, Oliver Evans of Philadelphia in the year 1813 was forecasting steam driven carriages that would provide travel “almost as fast as birds fly, between 15 and 20 miles per hour carriages may pass each other going in opposite directions and may travel by night as well as day; and the passengers will sleep as comfortably as they do now in steamboats”. Evans own early invention, the Orukter Amphibolos, or the Amphibious Digger was an early predecessor to the steam locomotive.
The first steam locomotive in the United States was built in 1825 and was operated over a half-mile circular track by John Stevens. Stevens was the father of Robert L. Stevens, the inventor of the T-rail, and sometimes called the father of American railroads.
Mr. E. L. Allen of the Delaware and Hudson Railroad Canal and Railroad Company, went to England and purchased three locomotives for the company. The Stourbridge Lion was the first to arrive in New York. The performances of the locomotive were witnessed by thousands of people who marveled at the imported oddity. The South Carolina Canal and Railroad Company in 1830 had a showing of the locomotive called The Best Friend Of Charleston. Peter Cooper, also a pioneer, created the steam locomotive Tom Thumb. In 1830 he demonstrated it on the Baltimore and Ohio tracks. The engine was then dubbed a “tea kettle on a track.”
In 1831 The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad staged a contest for the steam locomotives. Phineas Davis won the contest with his engine, The York. These few men were some of the great leaders in the railroad industry.
The Beginning of Carrier Trains in America
As soon as America began to have a push towards the development of railroads many people began requesting charters. In 1815 the first charter was granted by the State of New Jersey to John Stevens. Actual construction of New Jerseys first railroad was not started for two more decades.
Baltimore merchants and civic leaders who needed a way across the mountains to compete with the newly completed Erie Canal sponsored the development of the first rail network in the United States. These afore-mentioned men got a charter together in 1827 and used horse-drawn cars on the tracks. The first section of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad began in 1828. This first regular route ran between Baltimore and Ellicotts Mills. This 13 mile line was opened to the public in 1830. The B & O became the first common carrier railroad to be incorporated into the United States.
New Jerseys first railroad, the Camden and Amboy, was constructed in 1834. The Camden and Amboy operated one of the first few steam locomotives in America now known as the John Bull. Imported from England, this engine featured the most available technology of the time. Passenger service began in early 1835 with a room in the Blue Anchor Tavern serving as a waiting room. The management of the Camden and Amboy wished to maintain a monopoly in the area and purchased other small rail lines.
During this time of firsts in the Northeastern part of the United States, the Southeast was pioneering its own railroad network. The South Carolina Canal And Railroad Company also imported an engine from England. On December 5, 1831, the Best Friend of Charleston pulled the first regularly-scheduled steam train in the history of North America. A catastrophic accident destroyed the engine, but it was rebuilt and renamed the Phoenix.
At the time the South Carolina Canal and Railroad Company was the longest railroad in the world. The tracks stretched from Charleston to the village of Hamberg, South Carolina, a distance some 137 miles. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroads line from Baltimore to Ellicot City, Maryland proceeded this southern feat. But while the Best Friend was steaming along to South Carolina, the B & O Railroad was still using horse-drawn carriages.
During this period of time, many other railroad companies were formed and applied for charters. Some of these included:
The Philadelphia and Columbia