Transcontinental Railroad | Dancing with a Whirlwind | 2

Summary

American History Tellers: Transcontinental Railroad | Dancing with a Whirlwind | Episode 2

Release Date: November 20, 2024
Host/Author: Lindsay Graham
Network: Wondery

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Introduction: The Vision and the Schemer

In the summer of 1863, the United States was gripped by the colossal ambition of constructing the first Transcontinental Railroad. Central to this endeavor was Thomas Durant, a Wall Street speculator and railroad promoter whose relentless pursuit of profit would leave an indelible mark on American history.

Thomas Durant emerged as a pivotal figure in the Union Pacific Railroad, the company tasked with building westward from the Missouri River. Durant's manipulative strategies were crucial in securing the necessary funding and control over the project. As Durant himself puts it, "The potential is limitless." [01:24]

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Securing Investment: Durant's Maneuvers

Durant faced significant challenges in raising capital for the Union Pacific. Despite Congress chartering the company and setting ambitious goals, stock sales were sluggish. General Grenville Dodge, a Union Army General and engineer, voiced skepticism: "This just isn't a good time, not with a war going on." [01:45]

Undeterred, Durant employed deceitful tactics, including the formation of the infamous Credit Mobilier of America. This sham construction company allowed Durant and his associates to siphon funds by inflating construction costs, thereby enriching themselves at the expense of investors and the government.

Durant's passion was infectious, Dodgieworks, convincing many to partake in his vision. "The Union Pacific is not just another railroad. It promises to connect the nation from coast to coast." [02:26]

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Formation of the Union Pacific Board

By October 1863, Durant had maneuvered his way into the Union Pacific's board of directors, appointing himself as Vice President while positioning John Dix as a mere figurehead. This strategic reshuffling allowed Durant to exert full control over the railroad's operations, sidelining genuine leadership and oversight.

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Challenges in Construction: The Central Pacific Struggle

Simultaneously, the Central Pacific Railroad, tasked with building eastward from Sacramento, California, faced its own set of formidable obstacles:

• Labor Shortages: Initially relying on Irish immigrants, the Central Pacific struggled to maintain a steady workforce. Charles Crocker, the construction chief, resorted to hiring Chinese laborers despite rampant discrimination and hostility. As Durant stated, "We need men we can count on." [25:23]

• Harsh Terrain: The Sierra Nevada presented a daunting barrier, with treacherous snowstorms and towering granite cliffs like Cape Horn. The innovative yet perilous methods employed by Chinese workers, such as weaving reeds into baskets for tunnel blasting, underscored their invaluable contribution despite the extreme risks.

Peter Day, the Central Pacific’s Chief Engineer, initially resisted Durant's interference. "Durant is utterly unfit to head this enterprise," Dodge lamented [15:00], highlighting the internal conflicts that plagued the railroad's leadership.

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Chinese Laborers: Unsung Heroes of the Railroad

The introduction of Chinese workers was a turning point for the Central Pacific:

• Efficiency and Discipline: Contrary to prevailing prejudices, Chinese laborers proved to be exceptionally hardworking and disciplined. They adhered to strict schedules, maintained healthier lifestyles by drinking boiled tea, and demonstrated remarkable resilience in the face of physical and environmental challenges.

• Economic Exploitation: Despite their critical role, Chinese workers were compensated less than their white counterparts and endured harsher living conditions. Their contributions, however, were instrumental in overcoming the most challenging sections of the railroad, including the Bloomer Cut and the tunneling through the Sierra Nevada.

Charles Crocker acknowledged their prowess: "Workers diligence and clean living." [28:26], although the broader societal disdain towards Chinese immigrants persisted.

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Conflict and Competition: Durant vs. Dodge

The rivalry between Durant and Dodge epitomized the tumultuous race to complete the Transcontinental Railroad:

• Durant’s Persuasion: Durant persistently sought to incorporate Dodge into the Union Pacific's operations. After extensive negotiations, Durant successfully convinced Dodge to join as Chief Engineer in April 1866, recognizing Dodge’s engineering brilliance and military leadership. "The Union Pacific is waging the biggest battle of them all," Durant asserted [41:53].

• Organizational Overhaul: Under Dodge's leadership, the Union Pacific restructured its workforce along military lines, enhancing efficiency and discipline. The Casement brothers, Jack and Dan, were appointed to oversee track laying, bringing their military precision to the construction efforts.

• Financial Struggles: Both railroads grappled with significant financial constraints. Durant's schemes through Credit Mobilier initially provided cash flow but ultimately undermined the project's integrity. Meanwhile, the Central Pacific relied on seed capital from the Big Four and loans, barely managing to sustain operations through 1865.

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Government Involvement and Legislative Influence

The government's role was pivotal in the railroad's progress:

• Pacific Railroad Act Amendments: The 1864 amendments to the Pacific Railroad Act were a double-edged sword. While they increased land grants and bonds to accelerate construction, they also provided Durant with more avenues to exploit the system financially.

• Oakes Ames’ Intervention: Congressman Oakes Ames, under Lincoln’s directive, injected vital funds into the Union Pacific, purchasing Credit Mobilier stock and providing necessary loans. His involvement was crucial in keeping the Union Pacific afloat, though it also deepened the corruption and financial misconduct associated with the project.

As General Dodge reflected, "With the war to contradict him, so." [11:09], underscoring Lincoln's preoccupation with the Civil War and its impact on the railroad's oversight.

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Conclusion: The Relentless March Towards Completion

By late 1866, significant progress had been made:

• Union Pacific’s Expansion: Under Dodge’s disciplined management, the Union Pacific extended over 300 miles, astonishing observers with the rapid pace of construction. "Workers marching on foot from Omaha to Sacramento," a reporter noted, juxtaposing military precision with the sheer human effort involved [43:25].

• Imminent Challenges: Despite the advancement, both railroads faced impending adversities, including harsher winters and escalating competition. The Central Pacific was still battling the Sierra Nevada’s formidable terrain, while the Union Pacific contended with Native American resistance and financial instability.

“You know Durant is right,” Dodge conceded, recognizing the monumental struggle ahead [41:52].

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Looking Ahead

The Transcontinental Railroad's completion was not merely an engineering feat but a testament to human tenacity and the complex interplay of ambition, corruption, and innovation. The next episode, "Congress Sets Up a Race Between the Two Railroad Companies," promises to delve deeper into the fierce competition, the relentless challenges faced by the construction crews, and the escalating conflicts that threatened to derail this monumental project.

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Notable Quotes:

• General Grenville Dodge [01:25]: “This just isn’t a good time, not with a war going on.”

• Thomas Durant [02:26]: “The Union Pacific is not just another railroad. It promises to connect the nation from coast to coast.”

• General Grenville Dodge [15:00]: “Durant is utterly unfit to head this enterprise.”

• General Grenville Dodge [25:23]: “We need men we can count on.”

• Thomas Durant [41:53]: “The Union Pacific is waging the biggest battle of them all.”

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Production Credits:

• Hosted, Edited, and Produced by: Lindsey Graham
• Sound Design: Molly Bach
• Music: Lindsey Graham
• Writers: Ellie Stanton
• Producers: Alita Ryazanski, Desi Blaylock, Matt Gant
• Executive Producers: Jenny Lauer, Beckman Marshall, Louie and Aaron O'Flaherty

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For more insights into the monumental efforts and intricate politics behind America's great infrastructure projects, listen to American History Tellers on the Wondery App or your preferred podcast platform.

Transcript

[Thomas Durant]

Wondery plus subscribers can binge new seasons of American history tellers early and ad free right now. Join Wondery plus and the Wondery app or on Apple podcasts. Imagine it's August 1863 in New York City. Sweat clings to your army uniform as you walk into the cool, shadowed interior of a downtown steakhouse. You're a railroad executive and a major.

[General Grenville Dodge]

General in the Union Army.

[Thomas Durant]

You've come here today to meet with an old colleague, Thomas Durant.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Durant is a Wall street speculator and railroad promoter and is always working on.

[Thomas Durant]

Some sort of scheme.

[General Grenville Dodge]

As your eyes adjust to the dim lighting in the restaurant, you spot Durant.

[Thomas Durant]

Waving at you from his table in.

[General Grenville Dodge]

The corner, a bottle of Bordeaux already uncorked and two glasses filled. Ah, General, we have much to discuss. Durant slides a wine glass towards you as you take a seat. Good afternoon, Thomas. What are you cooking up this time? Durant rakes his fingers through his scraggly beard, his sharp eyes boring into you. An opportunity of a lifetime. A chance to invest in the Union Pacific. The company needs 2,000 shares in order to be incorporated, and only then can we begin construction.

[Thomas Durant]

Oh, I don't know, Thomas.

[General Grenville Dodge]

It's been more than a year since Congress chartered the company. From what I've heard, sales of the stock are lagging. Maybe with good reason. The scale of the project alone is enough to deter any smart investor. But the bigger the scale, the more money to be made. My friend, the Union Pacific is not just another railroad. It promises to connect the nation from coast to coast.

[Thomas Durant]

The potential is limitless. Thomas, I'm sorry.

[General Grenville Dodge]

It's a worthy project, to be sure, but that doesn't mean it's a sound investment. This just isn't a good time, not with a war going on. Well, I have an offer that I think will sway you. What would you say? If I put up the cash for your first 10% payment?

[Thomas Durant]

The stock will be in your name.

[General Grenville Dodge]

But I can personally guarantee that you'll be protected from any loss. I'll even take the stock off your hands if need be. It's a risk free deal. You take a sip of wine, weighing his words. His offer is generous, but suspiciously so. Well, I admit it's enticing.

[Thomas Durant]

Durant grins.

[General Grenville Dodge]

About a dozen other men said the same thing.

[Thomas Durant]

A dozen other men?

[General Grenville Dodge]

How many shares have you purchased? I thought the law limited individuals to owning no more than 200. Durant waves his hand impatiently.

[Thomas Durant]

Let me worry about the details.

[General Grenville Dodge]

You know, I think there might be a position on the board for you we're going to make history together, you and me. Durant's passion is infectious, and you can't help but feel stirred by his vision. The allure of being part of something so historic is undeniable. All right, then, count me in.

[Thomas Durant]

With a look of satisfaction, Durant signals to a waiter. You take a deep sip of wine.

[General Grenville Dodge]

You know you're entering uncharted territory.

[Thomas Durant]

But Durant has offered you a deal that is simply too good to turn.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Down, and the nation is counting on.

[Thomas Durant]

Daring men like you to deliver.

[Lindsey Graham]

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[Thomas Durant]

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[General Grenville Dodge]

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[Thomas Durant]

From Wondery I'm Lindsey Graham, and this is American History Tellers. Our in the summer of 1863, an unscrupulous businessman named Thomas Durant gained control of the Union Pacific Railroad, the company chartered by Congress to build the transcontinental railroad westward from the Missouri River. He pressured and enticed friends and acquaintances into purchasing shares by offering to cover their initial payments. By funding most of the stock purchases.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Himself, Durant took charge of the Union.

[Thomas Durant]

Pacific, a position he would use to siphon money out of the project and into his own pockets. But while these financial schemes were helping kickstart the Union Pacific 2,000 miles to the west in California, a shortage of workers delayed progress on the other end of the rail line, the Central Pacific. So soon the company would turn to an unexpected labor source to tackle its.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Most difficult and dangerous terrain. This is episode two, Dancing with a Whirlwind.

[Thomas Durant]

In July 1862, Congress passed the Pacific Railroad act, chartering the Union Pacific Railroad and setting up the central piece of the railway that would connect the country coast to coast. The Union Pacific would build a transcontinental railroad westward from the Missouri river, while the Central Pacific would build eastward from Sacramento, California. The Pacific Railroad act also appointed a board of 163 commissioners to the Union Pacific, most of them prominent railroad men, bankers and politicians tasking them with organizing the company. In September 1862, the board gathered in Chicago for its first meeting, but fewer than half of the appointed commissioners showed up. For most, the task of building the transcontinental railroad seemed too outlandish to even attempt. But despite the lackluster turnout, the commissioners selected temporary leaders for the company from those in attendance. But when the Union Pacific offered shares to the public a few days later, there were few takers. That presented a problem, because according to the Pacific Railroad act, the Union Pacific could not be incorporated until it sold 2,000 shares. The company advertised the sale of stock subscriptions in dozens of cities, but after four months, they had sold only a grand total of 45 shares to 11 men. Nearly half of those shares were bought by one man, Thomas Durant. He was a ruthless, scheming self promoter who loved money and was willing to lie, cheat and steal to obtain it. A Massachusetts native who graduated from medical.

[General Grenville Dodge]

School, he quickly decided he was not.

[Thomas Durant]

Cut out for life as a doctor, although he continued to use the nickname Doc. Only a career in business could satisfy his restless energy and insatiable appetite for profit. So instead of medicine, he set his sights on Wall street, investing in railroad stocks. In the 1850s, he founded a railroad construction firm and helped manage the construction of the Mississippi and Missouri Railroad. Now he intended to control the Union Pacific. This new railroad was the biggest government funded construction project in history, and Durant was not going to miss his chance to profit from it. Though he only had minor success in railroad building, he was never one to shy away from a challenge. An associate would later explain. He had a capacity in mental strength and energy which seemed to grow in proportion to the difficulties that he was compelled to encounter. So Durant put this capacity to work, and in September 1863, one year after the board had gathered in Chicago, the Union Pacific Suddenly sold all 2,000 shares it needed to incorporate. Durant had personally financed most of the sales through strawman buyers. It was an illegal move. The 1862 act limited individuals to owning no more than 200 shares. But Durant got what he wanted when the stockholders met the following month. In October 1863, the original commissioner stepped down, and a new board of directors took their seats. Most of these directors were handpicked by durant. His old colleague John dix was appointed president, and Durant himself became vice president. But dix was merely a figurehead. He had accepted a major general's commission. With the union army and with the.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Civil war raging, Dix had little time.

[Thomas Durant]

For managing a railroad. Durant would be the one calling the shots. But before he could begin work, he still needed to determine the railroad's eastern terminus. The 1862 law stipulated that president Abraham Lincoln would make the final decision, and Lincoln was flooded with petitions from communities on both sides of the missouri river, each seeking to benefit from the surge in business a railroad terminus would bring. As he considered his options, Lincoln recalled a chance meeting he had in council bluffs, Iowa, in 1859. He was introduced to a talented young engineer named Grenville dodge, and the pair discussed possible routes for the transcontinental railroad. Dodge had been adamant that the railroad should begin in council bluffs and travel west along the 42nd parallel across Nebraska's platte river valley, A broad, flat expanse stretching 600 miles from the missouri river to the base of the rocky mountains. Dodge considered it the most practical route because of the uniform grade across the valley and because other railroads were already building lines extending from Chicago to council bluffs. Four years after this meeting with Lincoln, Dodge was now serving in the union army. He fought in combat and built railroads to transport soldiers and supplies. He refused multiple job offers from both the central pacific and the union pacific. He was committed to seeing the war through.

[General Grenville Dodge]

But in the spring of 1863, President.

[Thomas Durant]

Lincoln summoned Dodge to the white house to discuss railroads. Dodge reiterated his belief in the platte river route and council bluffs as the starting point. This suited Lincoln because he owned property in council bluffs and he had political favors to repay in Iowa. But most of Lincoln's time was devoted to leading the nation through war, and he delayed making a final decision. In the meantime, Durant sent surveyors to omaha, Nebraska, Just across the river from council bluffs. Durant owned property in Omaha, and starting there would allow the union pacific to avoid the cost of constructing a large bridge over the missouri river. Then, on November 17, 1863, two days after Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address and three weeks after the Central Pacific spiked its first rails in Sacramento, Lincoln issued an executive order designating Council Bluffs, Iowa, as the railroad's eastern terminus. But the language in the order was vague, something Durant took advantage of to.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Make neighboring Omaha, located across the Missouri.

[Thomas Durant]

River, the real terminus. Lincoln and his staff were too preoccupied.

[General Grenville Dodge]

With the war to contradict him, so.

[Thomas Durant]

On December 1st, Durant staged a groundbreaking ceremony, complete with music and fireworks. In Omaha, the governor of the Nebraska Territory turned the first shovel of dirt, and soon speculators descended on Omaha to.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Buy up land so they could sell.

[Thomas Durant]

It later at higher prices.

[General Grenville Dodge]

In the meantime, Chief Engineer Peter Day.

[Thomas Durant]

Was ready to get to work. He awaited Durant's orders on where the.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Line should proceed from Oaha so that he could begin a survey.

[Thomas Durant]

But he soon learned the truth about Durant's priorities.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Imagine it's January 1864 in Omaha, Nebraska.

[Thomas Durant]

And you're the new chief engineer for the Union Pacific Railroad. The wind is howling outside your makeshift.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Office, and you're hunched over a cluttered desk making corrections to survey calculations. The door creaks open.

[Thomas Durant]

The gust of wind sends your notes scattering to the floor. Crouch down to retrieve them, and as you stand, you see Thomas Durant in the doorway.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Oh, it's cold enough to freeze the tail off a brass monkey.

[Thomas Durant]

Durant strolls in, hands in pockets. You stack the papers back on your.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Desk, trying to keep your composure. Oh, hello, document. Have you had the chance to approve my suggested line out of Omaha?

[Thomas Durant]

A smirk tugs at the corner of Durant's mouth. I've got a better idea. I want you to survey a new.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Route starting from DeSoto.

[Thomas Durant]

You frown, glancing down at your map of Nebraska.

[General Grenville Dodge]

DeSoto? It's 20 miles north of Omaha. It sure is. But when can you get it done? Well, excuse me, but am I missing something?

[Thomas Durant]

The terminus had been decided.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Logic, geography, even President Lincoln himself have.

[Thomas Durant]

All dictated that the route run from the Missouri river near Omaha to the.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Platte river and then west along the Platte Valley. Durant just shrugs. But I'm the one who hired you, and I want you to survey from DeSoto. Well, can you tell me why? I mean, you must have a good reason.

[Thomas Durant]

Durant leans on your desk, a gleam of mischief in his eyes.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Well, I bought land there, so this is about your personal investments. Durant chuckles, clearly enjoying your surprise. Once you survey that line, you can.

[Thomas Durant]

Start surveys out of Bellevue and Florence, too.

[General Grenville Dodge]

I've got all these towns competing against each other to give us depots, rails, and water storage. Whatever we want I think it's pretty smart. And don't you worry, I'm still negotiating with Omaha. Your work here won't go to waste. But do you even care about getting this railroad built? Doing all these surveys will waste precious time.

[Lindsey Graham]

We need to be grading the land.

[General Grenville Dodge]

If we're ever going to start laying tracks. Oh, we'll build the railroad. But we can have a little fun doing it, can't we? With a wink, Durant turns around and.

[Thomas Durant]

Saunters toward the door. You stare after him in disbelief.

[General Grenville Dodge]

You don't understand how a man like Durant can be trusted to lead this company.

[Thomas Durant]

Seems to you that with Durant in.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Charge, this railroad will never get built.

[Thomas Durant]

Durant's chief engineer, Peter Day, was busy laying out the precise route for the railroad when Durant started throwing out new possibilities for a terminus. In addition to Omaha, Durant had three nearby towns competing against each other. Day was furious. In early 1864, he wrote to his old friend and adviser to President Lincoln, Grenville Dodge, complaining if the geography was a little larger, I think Durant would order a survey round by the moon and a few of the fixed stars to see if he could not get some more depot grounds. He declared Durant utterly unfit to head.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Such an enterprise, explaining it's like dancing.

[Thomas Durant]

With a whirlwind to have anything to do with him. But Durant's faults as a manager were not the Union Pacific's biggest challenges. Construction would require enormous amounts of cash, but few investors were willing to risk their fortunes on such a big gamble. Durant knew that he needed to find a way to guarantee short term dividends to potential investors. So, like the Big Four at the Central Pacific, he decided to milk profit from construction. In March 1864, Durant founded a sham construction company called Credit Mobilier of America. The Union Pacific would hire Credit Mobilier to build the railroad at inflated prices. Credit Mobilier would subcontract the work to real crews at a much lower cost and pocket the difference. The profits would go to Durant and other insiders. Essentially, Durant and his friends planned to use government funds to enrich themselves. And with Credit Mobilier, Durant knew it didn't matter if the railroad was ever completed. He would make all his profits from just trying to build it. Durant also went to work in Washington, handing out cash and stocks to legislators in support of a revised railroad bill. Central Pacific Vice President Collis Huntington also aggressively lobbied Congress. And the two men's efforts paid off in July when Lincoln signed the 1864 Pacific Railway act into law. This new law increased the amount of land and bonds awarded to the two railroad companies, and it sped up the process of releasing the bonds. Now government bonds would be distributed for every 20 miles of track completed instead of the previous 40 miles.

[General Grenville Dodge]

It also granted the companies all coal.

[Thomas Durant]

And mineral rights on granted lands. But despite this good news, Durant continued devising creative ways to extract profit from the railroad. He decided to exploit the fact that the government was paying the railroad companies by the mile, and for help with this scheme, he enlisted Colonel Silas Seymour as consulting engineer. Late in 1864, Durant ordered Seymour to revise Peter Day's survey to have the railroad line detour to the south of.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Omaha in the shape of an oxbow.

[Thomas Durant]

This would add nine miles to the proposed route, which meant more government money and land and more profits to credit. Mobilier Engineer Peter Day was outraged, but.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Way back in Washington, officials maintained a rosy outlook. On December 6, 1864, President Lincoln gave a triumphant speech to Congress about the progress in the Union's war effort and.

[Thomas Durant]

That the transcontinental railroad had been entered.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Upon with a vigor that gives assurance of success. The next day, though, Peter Day resigned.

[Thomas Durant]

In protest of Durant's meddling and scheming.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Despite Lincoln's celebratory remarks, the railroad success.

[Thomas Durant]

Was by no means guaranteed. And more than two years after Congress.

[General Grenville Dodge]

First chartered the railroad, the Union Pacific had yet to spike a single rail. Things weren't better in California, where the.

[Thomas Durant]

Central Pacific still had to overcome the snow capped peaks of the Sierra Nevada. American History Tellers is sponsored by Audible.

[Lindsey Graham]

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[Thomas Durant]

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[Lindsey Graham]

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[Thomas Durant]

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[Lindsey Graham]

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[Thomas Durant]

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[General Grenville Dodge]

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[Thomas Durant]

On October 26, 1863, workers laid the first rails of the Central Pacific Railroad in Sacramento, California. There was no ceremony or fanfare. Central Pacific vice president Collis Huntington warned his associates about the tough road ahead. He wrote, if you want to jubilate over driving the first bike, go ahead and do it. I don't. Those mountains over there look too ugly. Anybody can drive the first spike, but there are many months of labor and unrest between the first and last spike. And he was right. But in the beginning, the crews had.

[General Grenville Dodge]

The advantage of starting their work on flat terrain.

[Thomas Durant]

Within two weeks, enough track had been laid for the Central Pacific to make its first run. A locomotive named the Governor Stanford traveled half a mile from downtown Sacramento to the end of the tracks. And as the path of the train progressed east of Sacramento, an army of crews cut through the California wilderness. Chief Engineer Samuel Montague led a small team of surveyors to map out the future tracks marking the exact route the railroad would follow to the California Nevada state line. Behind Montague and his team of surveyors.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Came the graders tasked with leveling the.

[Thomas Durant]

Land to prepare the railroad's path. These grading crews performed the most physically demanding work of all. They were forced to stoop low to dig through the earth and rocks with shovels and pickaxes. For hours on end, they heaved dirt onto embankments and loaded and unloaded carts of gravel. Then, after the graders, came the track layers. One crew lined up wooden ties along the grade. Another crew dropped the heavy iron rails into place, making sure they were spread exactly four feet, eight and a half inches apart. Others wielded sledgehammers to spike the rails to the ties. Each spike received three blows of an 18 pound sledgehammer. Most of these workers were Irish immigrants who had recently arrived in America. Construction chief Charles Crocker hired them through agents in Boston and New York and shipped them west. But finding laborers was a constant struggle. California had a small population, and most men preferred to work closer to the comfort of towns or out in the gold mines. But despite the shortage of labor, by February 1864, the Central Pacific track layers had laid 16 miles of track. But that same month, the graders encountered their first major hurdle at the Bloomer Divide, roughly 30 miles northeast of Sacramento. Bloomer Divide was a 63 foot high, 800 foot long stretch of naturally cemented gravel that needed to be cleared out one wheelbarrow at a time. Workers used up to 500 kegs of black powder a day, loosening up the gravel to create the so called Bloomer cut, a pathway through the divide. This process would take months. In the meantime, the track layers kept pushing east and the railroad began regular freight and passenger services between Sacramento and the end of the track in the Sierra foothills. But despite this new revenue stream, the Central Pacific was broke. For the rest of 1864, the company would scrape by using seed capital from the Big Four as well as loans from wealthy businessmen. But good News arrived in July 1864 when the Big Four learned that Congress had updated the Pacific Railway Act. Now the Central Pacific could collect government bonds every 20 miles of approved track. Unfortunately, the government was slow in distributing these bonds and by the end of 1864, the company had yet to receive a penny in government aid.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Crocker complained, if we only had the.

[Thomas Durant]

Government bonds in hand, that would help our credit. Amazingly. And Crocker knew that costs would only grow as his workers moved closer to the imposing granite walls of the Sierra Nevada. And by the start of 1865, his workforce only numbered 600 men. Not nearly enough to tackle the Sierras. So on January 7, Crocker placed an advertisement in the Sacramento Union for an additional 5,000 workers. Many joined, but few stayed. Men often signed up with a railroad to gain transportation to the end of the line before running off into the gold fields. The workers who did stick it out were managed by Crocker's newly hired crew boss, James Harvey Strowbridge. Strowbridge was a foul mouthed, hot tempered Irish immigrant. He stood six foot tall and wore a black eye patch after losing his eye in a powder accident at Bloomer Cut.

[General Grenville Dodge]

According to Crocker, Strowbridge declared, you cannot.

[Thomas Durant]

Talk to the workers as though you.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Were talking to gentlemen because they are not gentlemen. They are about as near brutes as they can get.

[Thomas Durant]

So, heaping verbal abuse on his workers.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Strowbridge extracted as much labor as he.

[Thomas Durant]

Could could from his meager crews.

[General Grenville Dodge]

But Crocker feared it wasn't enough.

[Thomas Durant]

He knew that if the Central Pacific was ever going to cross the Sierras.

[General Grenville Dodge]

More than anything, he needed men.

[Thomas Durant]

Imagine it's late January 1865 and you're the construction chief of the Central Pacific Railroad.

[General Grenville Dodge]

You're walking through the Bloomer Cut work.

[Thomas Durant]

Site in Newcastle, California with your crew.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Boss, James Harvey Strobridge.

[Thomas Durant]

It's dusk and the setting sun is casting long shadows over the jagged rocks.

[General Grenville Dodge]

That litter the ground. Your grading crews are breaking apart rock with pickaxes. The day's labor is nearly done and the Irishmen are all beat, their faces smudged with dirt. You turn to Strowbridge, weighing your words carefully. Well, you know we've got enough work to employ 4,000 men. We only have 800 on payroll. We're falling behind. James Strobridge grunts, his expression as stony as ever. We'll make up for it once we're done with this cut. Well, I'm not sure we will, but I. I do have an idea. I've been thinking about hiring these Chinese workers.

[Thomas Durant]

Strobridge's head snaps towards you.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Not a chance in hell I won't be responsible for work done by Chinamen. They're strange, unsavory people.

[Thomas Durant]

I don't like the idea of it.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Either, but what choice do we have? Where else are we going to find thousands of men desperate for work? Strobridge crosses his arms, his lone eye narrowing. The Chinese don't have the strength or the skills needed to build a railroad. It's damn hard work, and they're not cut out for it.

[Thomas Durant]

The foreman blows a whistle, signaling the.

[General Grenville Dodge]

End of the workday. The workers all drop their tools and.

[Thomas Durant]

Trudge back to camp.

[General Grenville Dodge]

You gesture toward them. Now, I know they're your countrymen, but be reasonable. The Irish have not exactly proved proven themselves to be reliable.

[Thomas Durant]

Half of these men are off to gamble their wages away right now.

[General Grenville Dodge]

The other half are just going to get drunk and clear out. We need men we can count on.

[Thomas Durant]

Strowbridge shrugs.

[General Grenville Dodge]

They just need more discipline, and I'm working on it.

[Thomas Durant]

Well, what better way to keep the Irish in line but to show them.

[General Grenville Dodge]

How easily they can be replaced? You honestly think Chinese men are hardy enough? The Chinese built the Great Wall, didn't they? All I'm asking for is a trial.

[Thomas Durant]

We hire 50 men to shovel dirt and rocks, and if they can't hack.

[General Grenville Dodge]

It, we'll move on. Strobridge clenches his jaw, mulling it all over.

[Thomas Durant]

Finally he exhales slowly.

[General Grenville Dodge]

50 men, that's it. And don't expect me to coddle them. If they can't do the work, they're gone.

[Thomas Durant]

Fair enough.

[General Grenville Dodge]

You clap Strobridge on the back, but there's a tightness in your chest. You're desperate for this experiment to work. Failure is not an option, because unless you hire more men soon, you know you'll never get across the Sierras.

[Thomas Durant]

In 1865, there were roughly 60,000 Chinese immigrants in California. Most had come during the gold rush, hoping to make money to support their families back in China. Many ended up as cooks, laundrymen and gardeners, earning as little as $3 a week. They faced rampant discrimination and violence, and this anti Chinese sentiment extended to the Central Pacific. Strowbridge insisted that Chinese men were not physically strong enough for railroad construction. But in January 1865, Crocker persuaded him to hire 50 Chinese workers on a trial basis. These initial 50 workers quickly proved Strobridge wrong. They were hardworking and conscientious. They did not complain. They worked in teams, and they took almost no breaks. They only drank boiled tea, which kept them healthier than the white workers, who often drank water from polluted ditches, a habit that made them prone to dysentery and other waterborne illnesses. So soon, Strowbridge hired more local Chinese men, paying them $26 a month to work 12 hours a day, six days a week. This was $4 less than what white workers made, and they had to pay for their own tents and food. So each gang of Chinese workers had a cook who sourced a wide variety of ingredients from San Francisco and Sacramento. And at night, the aromas of garlic, peanut oil, cuttlefish and seaweed wafted through the campsites. The Chinese worker's diet baffled the Irish, who ate mostly boiled beef, potatoes, and beans.

[General Grenville Dodge]

But Crocker was thrilled with the Chinese.

[Thomas Durant]

Workers diligence and clean living. So much so that he hired a labor agent in San Francisco to find more men and even recruit them out of China if necessary. By the end of 1865, the Central Pacific would employ 7,000 Chinese workers and roughly 2,000 white workers. These men would tackle some of the biggest challenges of the entire transcontinental railroad. This included grading the Bloomer Cut, a task finally completed in the spring of 1865.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Around that same time, Collis Huntington finally.

[Thomas Durant]

Received one and a quarter million dollars in government bonds for work completed the previous year. He used this money to pay off loans required to keep the work going. And then toward the end of the summer, 1865, track layers reached the town of Colfax, 54 miles east of Sacramento. But the distance from Colfax to the Donner Summit was another 50 miles, over the course of which the grade would climb nearly 5,000ft. And only three miles east of Colfax was one of the most daunting stretches of the entire route. A sheer granite cliff rising more than 1400ft above the American River. Nicknamed Cape Horn after the rugged tip of South America, the Workers needed to carve a ledge along the side of the mountain where the track would run. And Chinese workers came up with the idea of weaving reeds into baskets. A man would climb into one of these baskets and his fellow workers would lower him down. While dangling in the air by ropes, the man in the basket would use a hand drill to bore a small hole into the face of the cliff. Then he would insert black powder into.

[General Grenville Dodge]

The hole, light a fuse, and pray.

[Thomas Durant]

His fellow workers lifted him up fast enough to avoid the blast. The work was extremely dangerous, and an unknown number of men lost their lives. But clearing the roadbed in the area around Cape Horn was even more perilous. This area was home to some of the tallest trees in the world, which soared hundreds of feet in the air. A single gang of 300 men spent 10 days clearing just one mile. Meanwhile, the lumber was shipped to sawmills to be made into ties for the track. The workers then had to blast the stumps from the soil. And with each explosion, chunks of rock and timber flew through the air, raining down on the crews. In any given week, the men used as much blasting powder as the armies at Antietam did on the bloodiest day.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Of the Civil War.

[Thomas Durant]

But Cape Horn was not the only obstacle the Central Pacific crews faced. The challenges mounted in the fall of 1865 as the Chinese crews began blasting tunnels. Fifteen tunnels needed to be bored through.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Solid granite, a task without precedent anywhere in the world.

[Thomas Durant]

This would be the most difficult and dangerous work of the entire transcontinental railroad. And it was agonizingly slow. Even with men working in shifts around.

[General Grenville Dodge]

The clock, they averaged between 6 and 12 inches every 24 hours.

[Thomas Durant]

The cost of the blasting powder strained the Central Pacific scant resources, too. But at the end of the year, the railroad leaders known as the Big Four received the welcome news that the federal government had approved the track.

[General Grenville Dodge]

From mile 31 to mile 54, from Newcastle to Colfax.

[Thomas Durant]

This amounted to $1.1 million in government bonds.

[General Grenville Dodge]

But it was still not enough to cover their spending. In 1865 alone, construction had cost $6 million. The Central Pacific was desperately short on.

[Thomas Durant]

Cash, and it had only just begun.

[General Grenville Dodge]

To penetrate some of the hardest rock in North America. But he was not alone in facing seemingly insurmountable challenges. Out in the Great Plains, the Union Pacific confronted a tangled web of logistical and financial problems, plus resistance from the native communities who lived in the path of the race Railroad's tracks.

[Lindsey Graham]

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[General Grenville Dodge]

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[Collis Huntington]

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[Thomas Durant]

Unlike the Central Pacific, the Union Pacific had no mountains or towering trees to overcome in the Nebraska prairies. Instead, the men who ran the Union Pacific considered their greatest obstacle to be the thousands of Plains Indians living in the path of the advancing railroad. By 1865, the Cheyenne, Sioux and Arapaho tribes had endured brutal treatment from the U.S. army. In November 1864. The army attacked a Cheyenne village at Sand Creek, Colorado, massacring 150 Cheyenne, most of them unarmed women and children. Two months later, in early January 1865, 1,000 Cheyenne, Sioux and Arapaho warriors retaliated by descending on the tiny white settlement of Julesburg, Colorado. There they killed civilians as well as US army soldiers from nearby Fort Sedgwick. Afterward, they tore down miles of telegraph wire and burned Julesburg to the ground. Army leaders responded to this escalation by sending General Grenville Dodge to the Great Plains to lead campaigns against Indian war parties. But he was also ordered to clear the way for the Union Pacific Railroad. Dodge instructed his commanders to remove all Indians from the railroad lands, using force if necessary. While battling Indians in the Plains, Dodge also fielded a stream of telegrams from his former colleague, Union Pacific Vice President Thomas Durant. Durant offered Dodge the job of chief engineer in the wake of Peter Day's resignation. But Dodge refused to join the railroad until he was satisfied that he had subdued the Indians in its path. Meanwhile, the Union Pacific was short on cash. Even President Abraham Lincoln worried that the Union Pacific would collapse under the weight of its financial problems. So in January 1865, Lincoln summoned Massachusetts Congressman Oakes Ames into his office. Ames was known as the king of spades. Having made his fortune in the shovel.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Business, Lincoln told Ames, the road must.

[Thomas Durant]

Be built, and you're the man to do it. Take hold of it yourself. By building the Union Pacific, you will.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Be the remembered man of your generation.

[Thomas Durant]

So with Lincoln's encouragement, Ames poured his energy and money into the Union Pacific. Over the next several months, he and his brother Oliver bought $1 million worth of credit Mobilier stock. And he loaned the Union Pacific $600,000 so his crews could start laying track. Ames also began persuading his friends to buy Credit Mobilier stock at insider prices. Yet even with this infusion of funds, Thomas Durant faced manpower and material shortages. With thousands of young men fighting in the Union and Confederate armies, Durant struggled to find enough workers to build the railroad. Hardwood for ties needed to be shipped 175 miles up the Missouri river, too, and it was only navigable by steamboat for three to four months a year. So to save money and time, Durant ordered his contractors to use the Nebraska cottonwood for ties, even though it was far less durable. But in all this time, the Union Pacific still had not laid a single track. It wasn't until July 10, 1865, that the union Pacific finally spiked its first rails in Omaha. Three Months after, the Civil War came to an end and the railroad lost a great champion with the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. By the time winter set in that.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Year and the workers laid down their.

[Thomas Durant]

Tools, they had managed to lay just 40 miles of track, what one reporter described as two streaks of rust across the Nebraska prairie. Still, it was enough for the company to collect $640,000 in government bonds.

[General Grenville Dodge]

But 40 miles was far short of Durant's goal.

[Thomas Durant]

The 1864 Pacific Railroad act required the company to complete the first 100 miles of track by the end of June 1866. So by the start of that year.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Durant resolved to overhaul his organization to speed up construction.

[Thomas Durant]

Durant put brothers Jack and Dan Casement.

[General Grenville Dodge]

In charge of track laying because before.

[Thomas Durant]

The war, crews under the brothers leadership.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Had once laid three miles of track.

[Thomas Durant]

In a single day.

[General Grenville Dodge]

The Casements were tough bosses who demanded total obedience from their crew. Jack had served as a Union army officer in the Civil War, and his.

[Thomas Durant]

Workers called him General Jack. But there was one man Durant was still determined to hire, someone he believed.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Could finally turn the tide in his favor. Imagine it's April 1866, and you're standing on the platform of train station in St. Joseph, Missouri. The smell of burning coal fills the air as a train rolls in from the east. For more than a year, you've been.

[Thomas Durant]

Battling Indian warriors out in the Great.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Plains, but you've traveled here today to.

[Thomas Durant]

Meet with Union Pacific Vice President Thomas.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Durant before you head back to your.

[Thomas Durant]

Headquarters in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Durant steps down from the train carriage.

[Thomas Durant]

And walks towards you with a wide grin.

[General Grenville Dodge]

General, it's good to see you again. Passengers weave their way around you as you shake Durant's hand and nod curtly, already steeling yourself for the question you know is coming. Oh, hello, Doc. Well, you know as well as I do why I ask you to meet. It's time for you to leave the army and come join me at Union Pacific as our chief engineer. We need a man of your talents, your expertise. Well, we've been over this. I have a duty to perform.

[Thomas Durant]

Durant raises an eyebrow.

[General Grenville Dodge]

The war's been over for a year, my friend. What use are you to your country stuck in some post in the middle of nowhere?

[Thomas Durant]

If you joined the Union Pacific, you.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Could help build the future, help unite the nation from coast to coast, all while fighting off hostile tribes and managing a workforce that spans miles. Building railroads is a troublesome business, Doc.

[Thomas Durant]

The Union Pacific is building the most.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Troublesome railroad of all. Durant leans in.

[Thomas Durant]

Oh, I never thought of you as.

[General Grenville Dodge]

A man to shrink from a challenge. Tell me, what will it take to get you on board? I'm prepared to offer you a handsome salary. Better than anything you could get in the army. You hesitate, considering the question carefully. Well, I would need absolute control over the railroad.

[Thomas Durant]

There's one thing that the army has.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Taught me, it's that battles are never.

[Thomas Durant]

Won when there's a divided command. Well, of course.

[General Grenville Dodge]

You'd be chief engineer after all. No, I mean it.

[Thomas Durant]

Documents. I won't allow any interference from you.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Or your associates in New York. Durant throws up his hands.

[Lindsey Graham]

I'll give you full control.

[General Grenville Dodge]

You have my word. You study his expression, trying to gauge.

[Thomas Durant]

The sincerity behind his words.

[General Grenville Dodge]

You know full well what a meddler Durant is, especially when money is involved.

[Thomas Durant]

And already his eyes gleam with excitement. You say full control. Full control.

[General Grenville Dodge]

And how does $10,000 a year plus stock and Credit Mobilier? You'd be a rich man in no time.

[Thomas Durant]

The offer is tempting, more than enough to make up for the inevitable headaches.

[General Grenville Dodge]

That will come with a job. You extend your hand slowly. Well, I'll speak with General Sherman about resigning my command.

[Thomas Durant]

Durant grasps your hand with a firm shake.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Oh, you won't regret this.

[Thomas Durant]

But as you watch Durant walk away, disappearing into the stream of passengers on.

[General Grenville Dodge]

The platform, you know you're taking a big risk by trusting him. Still, you're not one to shrink from battle.

[Thomas Durant]

And Durant is right.

[General Grenville Dodge]

The Union Pacific is waging the biggest battle of them all.

[Thomas Durant]

In April 1866, Durant finally convinced Grenville Dodge to come aboard as chief engineer for the Union Pacific. Durant knew that Dodge was a brilliant engineer, a talented lobbyist, and an experienced commander of men. He was also well connected as a close confidant of the nation's top military leaders, Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman. So when he requested a leave of absence from the Army, Dodge received it. And he wasn't the only veteran joining the Union Pacific. One year after the end of the Civil War, there were thousands of young men looking for work, and veterans flocked to the railroad. Dodge soon reorganized the workforce along military lines. He later reflected that the railroad would never have been built without lessons learned from the war on how to think big and organize men, and he relied on his track laying chiefs, Jack and Dan Casement, to keep his workers in line. Managing men was a specialty of the Casement brothers, who oversaw 3,000 workers by.

[General Grenville Dodge]

The spring of 1866.

[Thomas Durant]

And once the Missouri river became navigable again in April. Supplies started pouring into Omaha and the.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Crews went back to work.

[Thomas Durant]

Soon the men were laying up to three miles of track a day, and by late July, the railroad extended 150 miles past Omaha.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Their work was a spectacular sight.

[Thomas Durant]

One reporter observed. Sherman with his victorious legion sweeping from.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Atlanta to Savannah was a spectacle less glorious than this army of men marching.

[Thomas Durant]

On foot from Omaha to Sacramento.

[General Grenville Dodge]

At the end of 1866, the Union.

[Thomas Durant]

Pacific line extended more than 300 miles.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Out of Omaha and the Central Pacific were grinding through granite and the Sierra Nevadas.

[Thomas Durant]

But both railroads were in for a harsher winter than they could ever imagine. Snowstorms and freezing temperatures threatened to bring.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Construction to a complete standstill just as.

[Thomas Durant]

The two railroads entered into a fierce.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Competition for miles, money and prestige. From Wondery.

[Lindsey Graham]

This is episode two of our four.

[General Grenville Dodge]

Part series Transcontinental Railroad from American History Tellers.

[Thomas Durant]

On the next episode, Congress sets up a race between the two railroad companies. Snowstorms blanket the Sierras while Central Pacific crews blast a tunnel through the Donner Summit.

[General Grenville Dodge]

And in Wyoming, Cheyenne warriors derail trains.

[Thomas Durant]

And attack Union Pacific workers. If you like American History Tellers, you can binge all episodes early and ad free right now by joining Wondery plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. Prime members can listen ad free on Amazon Music. And before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out a short [e-mail] survey.

[General Grenville Dodge]

American History Tellers is hosted, edited and produced by me, Lindsey Graham for Airship Audio Editing by Christian Paraga Sound design by Molly Bach Music by Lindsey Graham. This episode is written by Ellie Stanton Edited by Dorian Marina Produced by Alita Ryazanski Managing producers Desi Blaylock and Matt Gant Senior managing producer Ryan Lohr Senior producer Annie Herman Executive producers are Jenny Lauer, Beckman Marshall, Louie and Aaron O'Flaherty. For wondering.

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Now streaming on Prime Video.

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Based on characters created by James Patterson.

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[Collis Huntington]

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