University of Nebraska
U of Nebraska: Railroads and Making of Modern America: Railroad Work and Workers
Primary source materials related to employment by the railroads in the 1800s. Content includes letters, an employee database, blacklists that were shared between companies, payrolls, images, and more.
University of Nebraska
University of Nebraska Lincoln: Railroads and the Making of Modern America
Jump aboard to examine the importance of railroads during the Civil War. Delve into primary source documents that show how the newly developed rail system played a strategic role in many battles and also examine the role of slave labor...
University of Nebraska
U of Nebraska: Railroads and Making of Modern America: Representing the Railroad
A primary source collection of artworks, photographs, and illustrations of the railroads in the 19th century that represent different perspectives.
Calisphere: University of California Libraries
University of California: Calisphere: 1870 1900: The Transcontinental Railroad
Original photos and images highlighting the impact that the Transcontinental Railroad had on the lives and perspectives of Americans and Native Americans.
Other
Railroad Avenue: Glossary of Railroad Lingo
A glossary of railroad lingo. Gives a multitude of words and their definitions as related to railraods and trains.
Curated OER
Bureau of Land Management: Steel Rails and Iron Horses
Read about the building of the first transcontinental railroad and other railroads that came after. Find out how the checkerboard land ownership system affected the railroads. Includes lots of detailed lesson activities as well as a poster.
Canada Science and Technology Museum
Canada Science and Technology Museum: Background Information for Trains
Get answers to frequently asked questions about trains. For example, what is a steam train and what parts of a train make it move?
Canada Science and Technology Museum
Canada Science and Technology Museum: Locomotives
Get a glimpse into the history of Canada's railways and explore how the locomotive influenced transportation in the country. See some of the important advancements in locomotive technology in Canada from 1900 to 1960.
Other
Railroad Generalship: Foundations of Civil War Strategy [Pdf]
Find out about the use and importance of rail lines to both the Union and Confederate troops in the Civil War and how the generals from each side factored in the use of railroads into their military strategy. (PDF)
Library of Congress
Loc: About George Westinghouse
This is a detailed biography about George Westinghouse with a link to an article about Westinghouse from the Wilmerding News, 1904. Read about his many inventions that improved railroad safety.
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
Gilder Lehrman Institute: George Pullman: His Impact on Rr Industry, Labor, and American Life in 19th C.
[Free Registration/Login Required] This lesson plan seeks to discover the impact George Pullman had, not only on the railroad industry, but also on American life, by improving rail travel, and also establishing a company town for his...
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: Transportation in America Before 1876
In 1800, the United States was made up of 16 states, all east of the Appalachians, and most people lived within 50 miles of the Atlantic. Oceans and rivers were the nations' highways, providing the only viable way to travel long...
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: American Railroads in the 20th Century
A brief history of the last century and more of American railroads, from the early locomotives from the mid 1800s to today's fast passenger trains.
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: Community Dreams: Santa Cruz, California 1876
Discover how connecting Santa Cruz, California to the national railroad network in the late 1800s helped the town prosper and change.
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: Lives on the Railroad: Salisbury, North Carolina 1927
Replica of the Salisbury, North Carolina railway station teaches about riding and working on the railroad in the 1920s when railroads were a central part of American life. Railroad lines crisscrossed the country. They carried people,...
Other
The Pennsylvania Dutch Country Welcome Center: Overview
Excellent overview of Amish communities and the Pennsylvania Dutch Country. Includes Churches, Farmers Markets, Food and Wine, Shopping, Antiques, Quilts, Covered Bridges, Locations and Towns, a Video Tour, Weather & Climate,...
PBS
Pbs: American Experience: Streamliners: James J. Hill, 1836 1916
As part of a larger site about American railroads is this informative biography of James J. Hill, who built a rail line across the Northwest without federal assistance.
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: The Olomana in the Kingdom of Hawaii
Objects can lead you to some interesting stories. Read and see where and how this toy-like locomotive was used. Cursor down to locate this information.
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: Ap Us History: Period 6: 1865 1898: Politics in the Gilded Age
The study resource from Khan Academy provides an overview of Period 6: 1865-1898 in American History. The politics in the Gilded Age is discussed in this lesson. This resource is designed as a review for the AP US History Test.
Other
Utah Division of State History: Teaching Utah With Primary Sources
"Our Past Their Present" offers primary source sets on Utah history topics such as Japanese Internment and Women during World War II. Created by the Utah Division of State History to meet Social Studies Core Standards.
Library of Congress
Loc: Rise of Industrial America: Railroads in the Late 19th Century
A compilation of primary source documents addressing building and running the railroad system in the late 19th century.
University of Groningen
American History: Outlines: The Era of Expansion and Reform
This resource, a speech by Woodrow Wilson to Congress on April 8, 1913, gives a great review of how the United States transformed from from a rural country to an urban one. It includes a review of industrialization, new inventions,...
University of Groningen
American History: Essays: The Iron Horse: Main Events of the Twentieth Century
This last section of an extensive essay about the railroad in United States history discusses the role of the railroad in the 20th century.
Digital History
Digital History: Accelerating Transportation
A thorough look at the transportation revolution that occured in the early 1800s. Read about the building of roads, canals, and the spread of railroads. Find out about the surprising opposition to improved transportation, and see how...