Editing First transcontinental railroad (section)

==Origins==
[[File:Hartwell Carver 1847 Pacific Railroad Proposal Title Page.jpg|thumb|left|Title page of Dr. Hartwell Carver's 1847 Pacific Railroad proposal to Congress from [[Lake Michigan]] to the [[West Coast of the United States|West Coast]]]]

Among the early proponents of building a railroad line that would connect the coasts of the United States was [[Hartwell Carver|Dr. Hartwell Carver]], who in 1847 submitted to the [[United States Congress|U.S. Congress]] a "Proposal for a Charter to Build a Railroad from Lake Michigan to the Pacific Ocean", seeking a congressional charter to support his idea.<ref>Carver, Dr. Hartwell [http://centpacrr.com/Proposal_for_a_Charter_to_Build_a_Railroad.pdf "Proposal for a Charter to Build a Railroad from Lake Michigan to the Pacific Ocean"] Washington, D.C., January 18, 1847, Centpacrr.com</ref><ref>[http://cprr.org/Museum/Hartwell_Carver.html "Dr. Hartwell Carver's Proposal to Build a Railroad from Lake Michigan to the Pacific Ocean"] CPRR.org</ref><ref group=N>Carver's 1847 proposal records himself as having written a newspaper article on the subject in 1837. Some sources say that he wrote such an article in 1832.</ref>

===Preliminary exploration===
[[File:TranscontinentalPoster.jpg|right|thumb|upright|The official poster announcing the Pacific Railroad's grand opening]]

Congress agreed to support the idea. Under the direction of the [[United States Department of War|Department of War]], the [[Pacific Railroad Surveys]] were conducted from 1853 through 1855. These included an extensive series of expeditions of the American West seeking possible routes. A report on the explorations described alternative routes and included an immense amount of information about the [[American West]], covering at least {{convert|400000|sqmi|km2|abbr=on}}. It included the region's natural history and illustrations of reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals.<ref>[http://www.cprr.org/Museum/Pacific_RR_Surveys/ "Reports of Explorations and Surveys, to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean, made under the direction of the Secretary of War, in 1853–4."] 12 Volumes. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office, 1855–61</ref>

The report did not include detailed [[topographic map]]s of potential routes needed to estimate the feasibility, cost and select the best route. However, the survey was detailed enough to determine that the best southern route lay south of the [[Gila River]] boundary with Mexico in mostly vacant desert, through the future territories of [[Arizona Territory|Arizona]] and [[New Mexico Territory|New Mexico]]. This in part motivated the United States to complete the [[Gadsden Purchase]].<ref>Woodward, C. Vann "Reunion and Reaction: The Compromise of 1877 and the End of Reconstruction". Oxford: Oxford University Press (1991) p. 92</ref>

In 1856, the Select Committee on the Pacific Railroad and Telegraph of the US House of Representatives published a report recommending support for a proposed Pacific railroad bill:

{{Blockquote|The necessity that now exists for constructing lines of railroad and telegraphic communication between the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of this continent is no longer a question for argument; it is conceded by every one. In order to maintain our present position on the Pacific, we must have some more speedy and direct means of intercourse than is at present afforded by the route through the possessions of a foreign power.<ref>[http://cprr.org/Museum/HR_Report_358_1856.html "Report of the Select Committee on the Pacific Railroad and Telegraph"] US House of Representatives, 34th Congress, 1st Session, No. 358. August 16, 1856.</ref>}}

===Possible routes===
The U.S. Congress was strongly divided on where the eastern terminus of the railroad should be—in a southern or northern city.<ref>Zelizer, Julian E. (Ed) "The American Congress: The Building of Democracy". Kerr, K. Austin, Chapter 17: ''Railroad Policy'' (pp. 286–297). New York: Houghton Mifflin Co. (2004). p. 288</ref> Three routes were considered:
* A northern route roughly along the Missouri River through present-day northern [[Montana]] to [[Oregon Territory]]. This was considered impractical because of the rough terrain and extensive winter snows.<ref group=N>Later, the [[Northern Pacific Railway]] (NP) found and built a better route across the northern tier of the western United States from Minnesota to the Pacific Coast. It was approved by Congress in 1864 and given nearly {{convert|40|e6acre|km2|abbr=unit}} of land grants, which it used to raise money in Europe. Construction began in 1870 and the main line opened all the way from the [[Great Lakes]] to the [[Pacific Ocean]] on September 8, 1883.</ref>
* A central route following the [[Platte River]] in [[Nebraska]] through to the [[South Pass (Wyoming)|South Pass]] in [[Wyoming]], following most of the [[Oregon Trail]]. Snow on this route remained a concern.
* A southern route across [[Texas]], [[New Mexico Territory]], the [[Sonora desert]], connecting to [[Los Angeles]], California. Surveyors found during an 1848 survey that the best route lay south of the border between the United States and Mexico. This was resolved by the [[Gadsden Purchase]] in 1853.<ref>[https://history.state.gov/milestones/1830-1860/gadsden-purchase Gadsden Purchase, 1853–1854] U.S. Department of State, Office of the Historian.</ref><ref group=N>The southern route was constructed in 1880 when the Southern Pacific Railroad crossed Arizona territory.</ref>

Once the central route was chosen, it was immediately obvious that the western terminus should be Sacramento. But there was considerable difference of opinion about the eastern terminus. Three locations along {{convert|250|mi|km}} of Missouri River were considered:
* [[St. Joseph, Missouri]], accessed via the [[Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad]].
* [[Kansas City, Kansas]] / [[Leavenworth, Kansas]], accessed via the [[Leavenworth, Pawnee and Western Railroad]], controlled by [[Thomas Ewing Jr.]] and later by [[John C. Frémont]].
* [[Council Bluffs, Iowa]] / [[Omaha, Nebraska]], accessed via an extension of Union Pacific financier [[Thomas C. Durant]]'s proposed [[Mississippi and Missouri Railroad]] and the new [[Union Pacific Railroad]], also controlled by Durant.

Council Bluffs had several advantages: It was well north of the Civil War fighting in Missouri; it was the shortest route to South Pass in the Rockies in Wyoming; and it would follow a fertile river that would encourage settlement. Durant had hired the future president [[Abraham Lincoln]] in 1857 when he was an attorney to represent him in a business matter about a bridge over the Missouri. Now Lincoln was responsible for choosing the eastern terminus, and he relied on Durant's counsel.{{cn|date=March 2025}}
[[File:Eastern Terminus.jpg|thumb|The Golden Spike monument located in Council Bluffs, Iowa at the Eastern Terminus of the Union Pacific Railroad.]]
[[File:Golden Spike Monument Plaque.jpg|thumb|Plaque fixed to the Golden Spike monument.]]