Curated OER
Bureau of Land Management: Steel Rails and Iron Horses
Read about the building of the first transcontinental railroad and other railroads that came after. Find out how the checkerboard land ownership system affected the railroads. Includes lots of detailed lesson activities as well as a poster.
Texas State Library and Archives Commission
Texas State Library and Archives Commission: Hazardous Business: The Railroads Come to Texas: Railroad Regulation
Read about regulations that kept the early Texas railroad system safe, and check out an "Inspection report for the Houston & Great Northern, 1871." Also, learn how the Civil War affected the railroad and how it was rebuilt following...
Other
Texas Bird's Eye Views: Riding the Rails Across Texas
For this lesson, students will discover the benefits and drawbacks of railroads and understand the railroad's importance to Texas cities and American life.
Central Pacific Railroad Photographic History Museum
Cprr Photographic History Museum: The Postal History of the Pacific Railroad
This site deals mostly with the history of mail sent across the country in the late 19th century.
Other
Overland Trail: Ben Holladay, Stagecoach King
Information about the owner of the Overland Mail Express in the United States West.
Other
Railroad History: The Milwaukee Road
This site examines the history of the Milwaukee Road (Railroad). This site discusses cost, number of trains, routes, expansion through the Midwest.
Other
Psmre: The Northern Pacific Railway
This site from the Puget Sound Model Railroad Engineers provides information about the history of the Northern Pacific Railway. The route follows the path Lewis and Clark took in 1804. Mentions cost, manpower, and other railroad companies.
Texas State Library and Archives Commission
Texas State Library and Archives Commission: Texas Joins the Battle: Schedule of Houston and Texas Central Railway, 1879
See what cities were connected via the Houston and Central Texas Railway after the Civil War by looking at this railway schedule from November 7, 1879. This series of primary source documents details the growth of interconnectivity of...
Texas State Library and Archives Commission
Texas State Library and Archives Commission: Hazardous Business: Line and Lands of the Texas & Pacific Railway, 1873
Here's a map showing the Texas & Pacific Railway. Click on link to get larger version which shows the route across Texas as well as an inset which shows how the railway connected to other railroads in the U.S.