October 10, 1922 | Photograph
This is a photograph of Anna Bates, the great-granddaughter of Samuel B. Reed, just after the unveiling of the Samuel B. Reed monument in Joliet, Illinois on October 10, 1922. The monument is still located on the grounds of the Joliet, Illinois Will County Court House, approximately 75 feet from the northeast corner of the building. It reads: "On this spot in 1850 Samuel Benedict Reed, Civil Engineer, pioneer railroad builder, citizen of Joliet, began the survey for the present Chicago Rock Island and Pacific, the first railroad to reach and bridge the Mississippi River. The first train into Joliet reached this initial point October 10, 1852. As Chief Engineer of Construction he directed the building of the Union Pacific, the first trans-continental railroad, the completion of which in 1869 realized the dream of Columbus: a westward trade route to the Indies. This rock from the summit of the Continental Divide on the line of the Union Pacific was placed here through the cooperation of these two railroads and dedicated October 10, 1922."
1907 | Book
An excerpt from Jack London's The Road.
November 3, 1894 | Newspaper
Republican editor Edward Rosewater attacks "the corporation anaconda" he sees in the Nebraska 1894 campaign. The intimidation of railroad employees and the organization and direction of railroad money are his chief targets.
November 1, 1894 | Newspaper
The quality, availability, and cost of railroad service in a local community often became a contentious political issue pitting locals against non-locals and spilling into local political contests. The Omaha Bee, an enemy of railroad power of any sort, emphasizes the local community's "right" to equal service.
November 1, 1894 | Newspaper
In this advertisement in Bryan's World Herald, the State Republican Party of Nebraska presents the case against Bryan and Populism as harmful to the state's interests. Populism "burns up value" in Nebraska's assets, the ad charges, and accuses fellow Republican Edward Rosewater, editor of the Omaha Daily Bee, of perfidy and betrayal. The ad depicts Rosewater, a Jew, as a "Shylock" and "petty" tyrant, emphasizing instead the manliness of the Republican candidates and leaders.
October 28, 1894 | Newspaper
Even though the Omaha Daily Bee campaigned against railroad political power, the newspaper celebrates the opening of a new line it expects to reshape the West and enhance the prominence and position of Omaha, Lincoln, and other cities.
October 22, 1894 | Newspaper
In this roundup of Western news about "progress," the Omaha Daily Bee depicts the Indians as unable to manage relationships with aggressive, and presumably corrupt, railroad companies. It applauds the decision by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to restrain the railroads from building across Indian lands. The other news of the West evokes the progress that comes with railroads and that such decisions denied Indians.
October 18, 1894 | Speech
This article from the October 18, 1894 edition of the Nebraska State Journal summarizes the first debate between Republican candidate John M. Thurston and Democratic candidate William Jennings Bryan during the 1894 Nebraska Senate campaign. The article also presents each man's speech, in full, as well as their rebuttal statements.
October 18, 1894 | Speech
This article from the October 18, 1894 edition of the Omaha World Herald summarizes the first debate between Republican candidate John M. Thurston and Democratic candidate William Jennings Bryan during the 1894 Nebraska Senate campaign. The article also presents each man's speech, in full, as well as their rebuttal statements.
October 9, 1894 | Newspaper
The U.S. Senate campaign in 1894 featured long speeches by candidates at town gatherings across Nebraska. John Thurston presents his case for defending American interests first by contrasting McKinley as the American with Democratic internationalism.
September 27, 1894 | Newspaper
William Jennings Bryan's newspaper reports the events of his nomination at the state convention, emphasizing the joining of forces to defeat the Republicans and the deep history of the Democratic Party.
September 14, 1894 | Newspaper
Even newspapers editors such as Edward Rosewater who took strong stands against railroad corruption followed the doings of the railroad business. A visit from a "railroad man" to any town was a newsworthy event and a moment for speculation about the state of business affairs and the prospects of the town.
September 12, 1894 | Newspaper
In the middle of the 1894 election season, word spread that various railroads, including the Union Pacific, gave orders to their employees not to act in or speak about politics.
September 7, 1894 | Newspaper
William Jennings Bryan's World Herald calls attention to the demands of workers and the situation evolving around the Union Pacific receivership.
September 3, 1894 | Newspaper
Bryan's candidacy and his move to fuse with the Populists and campaign for free silver went against the Cleveland White House administration. In Nebraska the Democratic forces divided and some remained "gold bugs," staunch conservatives on the money issue and others remained reluctant to break with the Democratic presidential administration on such important issues. The Republican State Journal seeks to exploit the deep divisions in the Democratic Party.
August 30, 1894 | Newspaper
Carrying on his crusade against the railroads in politics, Republican editor Edward Rosewater criticizes the appointment of receivers for the Union Pacific and the Oregon Short Line. He argues that the judges are in the service of the Union Pacific and the result will be continued monopoly power over rates and service in the region.
August 24, 1894 | Newspaper
Edward Rosewater, a Republican leader and editor of the Daily Bee, accuses the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad of lavishing free passes as bribes to get Thomas Majors the Republican nomination for governor in 1894.
February 10, 1889 | Letter
The C, B & Q Master Mechanic for West Burlington, Iowa, reports on the work history of several engineers who were re-applying for work in the wake of the 1888 strike. Master Mechanic West indicated employees with hash tags (#) who should never be rehired.
November 14, 1883 | Broadsides
This General Order from November 14, 1883, circulated by S. T. Smith, General Superintendent of the Kansas Division of the Union Pacific Railroad, notifies all stations on the Kansas Division that "standard time" will begin at exactly 9:00 a.m. on Sunday, November 18, 1883. This order coincides with the establishment of time zones throughout the United States, a development necessitated by the speed of railroad travel.
February 23, 1880 | Letter
In the first part of her February 23, 1880 letter to Frank, Genie Hathaway rapturously describes the luxuries of riding in a Pullman car on the way to Chicago. She mentions several of her fellow passengers, one of whom is female world traveler. The second part of her letter describes the vulgarity of the passengers traveling with her in a "common car". Part of the letter is damaged.