May 22, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the May 22, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a celebration for the Pacific Railway outside the Chicago Tribune building in Chicago, Illinois.
May 22, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the May 22, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a railroad disaster following a bridge collapse at Buckfield, Maine.
May 29, 1869 | Illustration
This image was a metaphor for where the nation was going, although it said little about where the nation had been. Created by Alfred R. Waud, one of the most prolific Civil War sketch artists and lithographers, the image suggested a national tapestry of progress. Far from binding the nation, railroads and the culture that developed around them had been one of the root causes of discord and division.
May 29, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the May 29, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts wealthy train passengers being served in a palace hotel car on the Pacific Railroad.
May 29, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the May 29, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts laborers of both European and Asian descent working on the final mile of the Pacific Railroad.
June 5, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the June 5, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a large celebratory gathering around the place where the Union Pacific and Central Pacific lines joined at Promontory Summit, Utah.
June 12, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the June 12, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly presents a satirical look at race and the completion of the Union Pacific railroad.
August 28, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the August 28, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a Nebraska prairie fire near the Union Pacific railroad. Harper's Weekly and Frank Leslie's Magazine featured stories about highlights along the transcontinental route
August 28, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the August 8, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly shows the city of Omaha, Nebraska from the site of the Old Capitol building. Harper's Weekly and Frank Leslie's Magazine featured stories about highlights along the transcontinental route.
September 11, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the September 11, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the rail station in Sherman, Wyoming Territory.
September 25, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the September 25, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the new railroad depot on Hudson Street in New York City, New York.
September 25, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the September 25, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the Vanderbilt bronze monument at the Hudson River railroad depot in New York City, New York.
October 16, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the October 16, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a Central Pacific Railroad passenger train traveling through Ten-Mile Canyon in Nevada. Just months after the driving of the "golden spike," the transcontinental railroad was in operation ferrying passengers through some of the sublime, dramatic landscape of the west.
October 30, 1869 | Illustration
This image from the October 30, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the Union Pacific Railroad in Weber Canyon. Just months after the driving of the "golden spike," the transcontinental railroad was in operation ferrying passengers through some of the most sublime, dramatic landscapes of the west.
1870 | Illustration
Richard Cobden, a leading Liberal in Parliament, was also invested in the Illinois Central Railroad. He took two major trips to the United States, first in 1835 and again in 1859. During his first trip he traveled on railroads for a total of just ninety miles, from Lowell, Mass., to Boston, and then to Providence, R.I. On his second trip, twenty-four years later, he traveled 4,000 miles on American railroads.
March 19, 1870 | Illustration
This image from the March 19, 1870 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts workers and a snow plow attempting to clear a snow drift on the Pacific Railroad.
March 19, 1870 | Illustration
This image from the March 19, 1870 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts an accident due to a bridge collapse on the Mississippi Central Railroad.
February 25, 1871 | Illustration
This image from the February 25, 1871 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the recovery of bodies following a serious railroad accident at New Hamburg, New York.
February 25, 1871 | Illustration
This image from the February 25, 1871 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts New Hamburg, New York the morning following a serious railroad accident.
February 25, 1871 | Illustration
This image from the February 25, 1871 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a burning railroad car following an accident at New Hamburg, New York.