On the Road to Gold Mountain: Chinese Workers and the Transcontinental Railroad

On May 10, 1869 the United States was linked from coast to coast by the completion of the world's first transcontinental railroad. The two railroad companies that built the railroad, Central Pacific (working from west to east) and Union Pacific (working from east to west), met at Promontory Summit, Utah. Over 20,000 workers contributed to this momentous occasion, toiling in some of the country’s harshest environments. While the majority of the Union Pacific workers were Irish Americans and Civil War veterans, most of Central Pacific's workers were not native-born Americans, but Chinese. Despite the many challenges these Chinese workers faced – a long journey across the Pacific, harsh climates, dangerous work, and cruel racial slurs from their white supervisors and co-workers – their hard work and ingenuity were invaluable to the completion of this monumental achievement in American transportation.