Railway Expansion into the West, Free Essay Sample

The rapid technological advancements experienced in the United States contribute to the changed lifestyles of most American residents. The transcontinental railway network was purposed to meet the growing need for efficient transport as well as to support the economy of the United States. Immigrants were considered essential to the construction of the railroad. The railway expansion impacted on the livelihoods of most people in the West in varied ways. The groups that were affected include but not limited to Chinese immigrants, the Mormons, cattlemen, European immigrants and Native Americans

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Chinese immigrants had already settled In the West when the transcontinental railway came about. Expansion of the railway witnessed Chinese immigrants experiencing diverse discrimination by race. Although they invested most of their resources into the railway project, they were socially segregated after the completion of the railway. The railway project witnessed Chinese workers being banned from coming to the United States. Railway expansion played a significant role in preventing Chinese immigrants from acquiring American citizenship.

The expansion of the railroad demanded both the natural and human resources from Native Americans. The construction of the railroad wanted buffalos out of their way. This resulted to the killing of hundreds of buffalo, an activity that was pursued by employed hunters who slaughtered almost every buffalo that came their way. This affected the livelihoods of most Native Americans who depended on buffalo for food, clothing and other things. The massive killing of the buffalo was one strategy used by the US government to orient the native tribes to depend on the government for food.

Mormonism in the United States was borne long before the intercontinental railway expansion. Mormons had been subjected to unfair treatments because of their long preserved traditional character. The railroads witnessed the coming of outside cultures who threatened the Mormonism. As a result, the society was soon filled up with people from different places, a factor that played a role in the extinction of Mormon traditional beliefs. The Mormons were subjected to acquiring new lifestyles like drug abuse, prostitution, and other antisocial behaviors that changed their ways of life.

European settlers were also not exceptional with the coming of the great railway. It was harder for European settlers to get jobs in the railway project because of the Chinese who were apparently given most jobs in the railway site. As a result, most Europeans suffered economic constraints among other issues. Furthermore, Native Americans had significant advantages over the European settlers because they had already established in the region, making their survival easy. The European settlers had low trade networks, lacked employment recommendations, a factor that played a role in their economic hardships.

Cattle industry was vital for the Westerners and contributed to a significant part of their livelihoods. The cattle were used for various reasons like food. The intercontinental railway's expansion witnessed massive demand for cattle that resulted in even more sales. Also, the abundant grass in the West enabled dairy keeping, a factor that played a role meeting the consumer needs. The coming of the railroad, however, witnessed increasing theft cases- lots of cattle were being stolen. Also, the attack by Native Americans saw cattlemen fearing for their lives even more. The anxiety exhibited by the cattlemen was caused by the increasing attacks and theft cases meaning they could not give much attention to dairy keeping as before.

The coming of the railway impacted either positively or negatively on the majority of the American residents. The arrival of the intercontinental railway promoted massive emigration of most immigrant who found the environment unconducive for their survival. It witnessed significant social-economic and political changes taking the course in America.