From a book written by a civil engineer, John Debo Galloway, this article discusses the construction of the Central Pacific Railroad including construction methods, problems, and the eventual meeting of the rails at Promontory Point.

Use this resource to learn about the steam engine, Gov. Stanford, which was used in many roles on the Central Pacific Railroad line.

From a book "The First Transcontinental Railroad" by John Debo Galloway, a civil engineer, comes this comprehensive description of the topography of the route of the Central Pacific Railroad.

From an article by B.P. Avery printed in the May, 1869, issue of "Overland Monthly" is this description of the building of the transcontinental railroad including information about the Central Pacific Railroad and the Union Pacific...

This chapter from "The First Transcontinental Railroad" by John Debo Galloway contains biographies of the important men who conceived of the railroad, found funds for the line, and engineered the construction.

An article from the Utah Quarterly, Vol. 37, No. 1, by George Kraus, recounts the decision to use Chinese laborers in building the Central Pacific Railroad. Many primary source documents included as well as supplemental direct quotes in...

This site offers an abstract from Van Nostrand's Eclectic Engineering Magazine from 1870 from a paper by John R. Gilliss. A comprehensive look at the tunnels built along the route of the Central Pacific Railroad and the Union Pacific...

A chapter from John J. Stewart's "The Iron Trail to the Golden Spike" about Utah and the transcontinental railroad.

Find out about a Chinese immigrant who, after laboring on the Central Pacific Railroad, became a wealthy miner in Colorado. From the Colorado Historical Society.

From a 1969 publication by the Chinese Historical Society of America comes this extensive look at the Chinese role in the building of the Central Pacific Railroad from California east to Utah.

As part of a book about the Central Pacific Railroad written in 1898, this article discusses the origin of the idea to construct a transcontinental railroad.

A brief history of the first transcontinental railroad and the vision of Theodore Judah as well as the financing of the "Big Four."

From The Brown Quaterly (1997) an article describing the role of the Chinese immigrant in building the railroad. Includes images of the Chinese railroad workers. (PDF - scroll down to page 7)

Read a brief biography of the native of New York, Leland Stanford (1824-1893 CE), who helped to buid California's Central Pacific railroad.

Provides excerpts from "Fusang: The Chinese Who Built America: The Chinese Railroad Men" by Stan Steiner. Describes how the Chinese contributed to the construction of the transcontinental railroad.

Excellent overview of the Chinese experience in California complete with historical photos and primary documents. Site provides information on San Francisco's Chinatown, the anti-Chinese Movement, and Chinese laborers.

This site describes the settlement of the West happened quickly with the passage of the Homestead Act of 1862 and the push for the Transcontinental Railroad. With the explosion of the mining and ranching industries, the West was all but...

Provides a short description of the development of the transcontinental railroad and the "Big Four" behind the construction. From the San Francisco News Letter of September 1925.

This resource provides information about the first transcontinental railroad, which was built by nearly 30,000 Irish, German, Italian, and Chinese laborers.

Library of Congress presents primary source documents, essays, photos and maps of historical events on May 10th including a ceremony at Promontory Point, Utah for the meeting of the Union Pacific and Central railways and the capture of...