The New Federalist January 27, 1992 Pages 6-7

American Almanac
AMERICA'S RAILROADS:
Success Story for Dirigist Nation-Builing
!y Alan Le"inson
May #$% #&'(: Railroa )or*ers
an officials cele!rate t+e com,le-
tion of t+e -.S. transcontinental
railroa in /romontory% -ta+% as a
golen s,i*e is ri"en to connect t+e
-nion /acific an Central /acific
Railroas. Left: America's leaing
railroa engineer 0eorge 1as+ing-
ton 1+istler an 2rig+t3 Syl"anus
4+ayer% )+o traine leaers of t+e
Army Cor,s of Engineers at 1est
/oint.
In eastern Europe, the Third orld, and e!en the "nited #tates itsel$ today,
the poli%y o$ the "&#& go!ern'ent is to oppose state inter!ention $or the
purpose o$ de!eloping the e%ono'i% in$rastru%ture o$ a nation& (owe!er,
%ontrary to the poli%y o$ the "nited #tates today, during the nineteenth
%entury, the railroads, whi%h were the leading edge o$ the )uilding o$ our
nation, were not )uilt e*%lusi!ely )y +$ree enterprise,+ )ut rather with the aid
o$ the $ederal go!ern'ent, or, when that was )lo%,ed )y $ree enterprisers,
with the aid o$ state and e!en %ity go!ern'ents& In $a%t, our own nation-
)uilding e*perien%e pro!es %on%lusi!ely that an underde!eloped nation %an
only )e de!eloped through the positi!e inter!ention o$ the pu)li% se%tor&
The e*a'ple o$ railroads in the "&#&-& de'onstrates that state inter!ention
is ne%essary )oth to $inan%e and to plan in$rastru%ture de!elop'ent& -ll
e$$orts at )uilding the early -'eri%an railroads e*%lusi!ely )ased on pri!ate
$unding $ailed& hen $ree enterprise ideologues were in politi%al %ontrol o$
the $ederal go!ern'ent in the period )eginning with the dis'antling o$ the
#e%ond National .an,, the railroads were $inan%ed through the rearguard
e$$orts o$ the state and %ity go!ern'ents& /ater, the $ederal go!ern'ent
inter!ened to help $inan%e the de!elop'ent o$ the nation through the $ederal
land grant syste'& Throughout the entire period o$ the de!elop'ent o$ "&#&
railroads, it was not the pri!ate se%tor whi%h pro!ided the engineering $or
this great pro0e%t, whi%h 'ore than anything else 'ade the "&#& one nation
e%ono'i%ally, )ut rather the "&#& -r'y 1orp o$ Engineers&
This arti%le will e*a'ine how the "&#& railroads were )uilt, to re'ind the
world that this 2reat Pro0e%t was not %arried out on the )asis o$ the $ree trade
poli%ies, whi%h the "&#& is now hypo%riti%ally i'posing upon the rest o$ the
world& I$ eastern Europe is to )e re%onstru%ted, the Third orld de!eloped,
and i$ the "&#&-& itsel$ is to re)uild its rapidly %ollapsing in$rastru%ture, it
will )e a%hie!ed only )y resorting to the dirigist 'ethods whi%h were
originally e'ployed in -'eri%a& In the last %entury, this $a%t was well
,nown& -s we shall show, in the nineteenth %entury, when 3ussia wanted to
)uild railroads, it e'ulated the "&#& 'odel, and it turned to the "&#& -r'y
1orp o$ Engineers to get the 0o) done&
-t the ti'e o$ the -'eri%an 3e!olution, the 14 %olonies produ%ed one-
se!enth o$ the world5s iron despite the $a%t that the .ritish had done all they
%ould to pre!ent the de!elop'ent o$ 'anu$a%turing& -$ter the war, .ritain
$or)ade the e*port o$ any o$ its te%hnologi%al ad!an%e'ents to the "&#&
-lthough the "&#& %ir%u'!ented this )an on te%hnology to so'e e*tent and
$inan%ed !arious de!elop'ent pro0e%ts through -le*ander (a'ilton5s First
National .an,, it wasn5t until the presiden%y o$ John 6uin%y -da's7
)eginning in 18297that the nation5s de!elop'ent )egan to a%%elerate& -
%riti%al step in this dire%tion o%%urred in 182:, with the passage o$ the
#ur!ey -%t whi%h allowed the loaning o$ est Point engineers to lo%al
go!ern'ents and pri!ate %o'panies )uilding %anals or railroads& This, in
turn led to the esta)lish'ent o$ the .oard o$ Engineers $or Internal
I'pro!e'ents sta$$ed )y est Point engineers&
4+e O,,osition
(owe!er, when -ndrew Ja%,son was inaugurated as President in 1828, he
a)olished the .oard o$ Engineers, repealed the #ur!ey -%t and re$used to
re%harter the #e%ond .an, o$ the "nited #tates&
This )attle )etween nation-)uilders and $ree enterprisers was re$le%ted in the
earliest railroad pro0e%ts& For e*a'ple, in 1817, the Boston Courier atta%,ed
the idea that railroads %ould e!er )e de!eloped& In the !iew o$ the news-
paper, anyone who ad!o%ated this was %onsidered 'ad&
hen the $irst railroads were )uilt, there was a %on%erted e$$ort to sa)otage
the'& (enry illia's, a dire%tor o$ the .oston and or%ester 3ailroad, set
$orth an o!er!iew o$ the )attle in a spee%h he ga!e on the o%%asion o$ the
opening o$ the road on July 6, 1849;
- $ew years ago this pro0e%t started <illia's said=& It had 'any
war' and high-spirited $riends and ad!o%ates> also 'any strong and
power$ul ene'ies& #trange as it 'ay see', these ene'ies were to )e
$ound prin%ipally a'ong the ri%h and power$ul7the !ery %lass o$ 'en
who possessed the 'ost a'ple 'eans, and so 'ight ha!e )een
e*pe%ted to )e the $irst and $ore'ost in ad!o%ating and prose%uting an
i'portant, a no)le pu)li% enterprise& True, there were honora)le
e*%eptions> )ut it %annot )e denied that !ery 'any great 'en, !ery
'any ri%h 'en, re$used all parti%ipation, s%o$$ed at our pro0e%t,
pointed at so'e o$ us the $inger o$ s%orn and )andied su%h epithets as
?hare-)rained enthusiasts,@ ?!isionaries@, who ?al'ost deser!e to )e
sent to the 'ad house&@
-ll this was said7nay 'ore> $or when the $irst spade was stu%, in the
ground the dire%tors were %alled ?$ools,@ ?idiots@ and ?,na!es&@ They
were de%lared guilty o$ a high %ri'e in %o''en%ing wor, whi%h 'ust
ine!ita)ly result in as total a loss as i$ the 'oney e*pended were
sho!eled into the )otto'less pit&
-ll this was said and 'u%h 'ore& Aeasures were a%tually ta,en to
arrest wor, and %ause an a)andon'ent o$ the enterprise& .ut, than,s
to the true $riends o$ the pro0e%t, they stood $ir' and, with war'
hearts and 0ust %on$iden%e in those who were %hosen to prose%ute the
wor,, 'an$ully and su%%ess$ully resisted all atte'pts to %rush the
no)le pro0e%t&
The road had a sorry )eginning& -t $irst so'e o$ our pro'inent 'en
were willing to ad!an%e a $ew dollars to 'a,e e*a'inations and
sur!eys> )ut when %alled upon to ta,e and pay $or the sto%, $or whi%h
they had su)s%ri)ed, they $lin%hed and !o%i$erously %ried out it was
'adness to go on> that the road would %ost three ti'es the a'ount o$
the esti'ates, and e!en i$ it should )e )uilt it would )e ne*t to worth-
less and %ould ne!er pay hal$ o$ one per %ent on the %ost&
(ere we are 'y $riends in the heart o$ the %o''onwealth& e %a'e
)y railroad all the way $ro' .oston, $orty-two 'iles, in less than three
hours& The road is $inished, )ut who a%%o'plished the wor,B (as it
)een done )y the ri%h 'en, the great 'en o$ the ti'esB .y our
Cuarter, hal$, and whole 'illion 'enB No sirD It has )een a%%o'-
plished )y the )one and sinew o$ the %o''unity> )y the 'iddling
interest people, )y that %lass o$ 'en who ha!e war' hearts, %lear
heads, and who possess al'ost a 'onopoly o$ generous pu)li% spirit&
In a spee%h deli!ered in the "&#& (ouse o$ 3epresentati!es, Ea!id &
Ei%,inson, a %ongress'an $ro' Tennessee, gi!es us an idea o$ the outloo,
and %hara%ter o$ this opposition& (is spee%h %alled $or eli'inating the
appropriation $or the "nited #tates Ailitary -%ade'y at est Point& This
representati!e o$ a state where sla!ery was legal, used as one o$ his argu-
'ents that an appoint'ent to est Point was dis%ri'inatory;
The $eeling o$ eCual rights is one that, in this 2o!ern'ent, ought to )e
strengthened& The !alue o$ this $eeling was well understood 'ore
than two thousand years ago& It was one o$ the 'a*i's o$ that
politi%al %ode whi%h /y%urgus, the saga%ious law-gi!er o$ /a%ede'on,
i'posed upon his %ountry'en, that the son o$ hi' who sat in the
-'phi%tyoni% %oun%il should not )e a$$orded greater ad!antages )y
the go!ern'ent, than the son o$ the hu')lest %itiFen o$ #parta& This
$eeling o$ eCuality in the en0oy'ent o$ politi%al pri!ileges is the
sti'ulant whi%h 'ade her one the $irst states o$ -n%ient 2ree%e $or the
wisdo' o$ her poli%y, and the )rillian%y o$ her 'ilitary a%hie!e'ents&
GIt is %ertainly interesting that Ei%,inson ta,es as his 'odel /y%urgus5s
#parta, whi%h as the 2er'an poet and historian Friedri%h #%hiller points out
was a sla!o%ra%y and prohi)ited s%ien%e and te%hnology&H
hat is $airly apparent $ro' these re'ar,s is that power$ul $or%es opposed
the de!elop'ent o$ the railroad& (ad the s%ienti$i% and engineering %apa)ili-
ties )een inadeCuate, initial $ailures %ould easily ha!e doo'ed the progra'&
(owe!er, su%%ess o$ these early railroads happily had the opposite e$$e%t&
4+e B5O Railroa
The earliest large-s%ale railroad pro0e%t in the %ountry7.alti'ore and Ihio
3ailroad, or .JI, started in 18277)e%a'e a 'odel $or !irtually the
entirety o$ the rest o$ the networ, )uilt up to the 1i!il ar& - letter $ro' the
#e%retary o$ ar Ja'es .ar)our to Phillip Tho'as, president o$ the railroad,
unders%ores the $ederal go!ern'ent %o''it'ent;
The su%%ess$ul introdu%tion o$ 3ail-3oads into this %ountry <.ar)our
wrote= is !iewed )y the Eepart'ent as o$ great national i'portan%e,
and espe%ially any pra%ti%a)le 'ode o$ %onne%ting the -tlanti% #tates
with the estern> whether )y 3ail-3oads or 1anals, so that the %o'-
'odities to )e $ound in either %an )e %on!eniently and %heaply %on-
!eyed to the other, a%ross the )arriers whi%h di!ide the', and whi%h
%o''uni%ation, while aiding in the ad!an%e'ent o$ %o''er%ial
enterprise, o$$er the 'ost sure and e%ono'i%al 'eans to the 2o!ern-
'ent to %on!ey, to the di$$erent parts o$ the "nion, the 'eans o$
de$ense, in the transportation o$ 'en and 'unitions to the seat o$ war,
where!er it shall e*ist&
The earliest atte'pt to )uild a railroad )y pri!ate %apital in the "nited #tates
was in 1819 in the state o$ New Jersey& The New Jersey legislature granted a
%harter $or a railroad )etween Trenton and New .runswi%,& .e%ause not
enough %apital was raised, the %harter was %an%elled& Ither atte'pts su)se-
Cuent to this also $ailed, 'a,ing it %lear that, i$ railroads were to )e %on-
stru%ted, the go!ern'ent would ha!e to parti%ipate&
ith the su%%ess o$ the state-$inan%ed Erie 1anal in New Kor,, the
Pennsyl!ania legislature authoriFed the %onstru%tion o$ a %anal )etween
Pitts)urgh and Philadelphia& I!er the hills )etween the #%huyl,ill and the
#usCuehanna ri!ers and a%ross the %rest o$ the -lleghenies, )etween
(ollidays)urg and Johnstown, %anal %onstru%tion was not pra%ti%al& There-
$ore, the legislature authoriFed in 1828 the %onstru%tion o$ a railroad to
%onne%t Philadelphia with the eastern ter'inus o$ the %anal at 1olu')ia&
The Philadelphia and 1olu')ia was not only one o$ the $irst pro0e%ts o$ its
,ind in the "nited #tates, )ut, a%%ording to Pennsyl!ania historian ilson,
+the $irst railroad underta,en in any part o$ the world )y a go!ern'ent&+
The estern and -tlanti% 3ailroad was entirely $inan%ed )y the state o$
2eorgia )e%ause the di$$i%ulty o$ the route dis%ouraged any pri!ate %apital&
The %ity o$ -tlanta was na'ed a$ter the railroad and in $a%t it owes its
position as a 'a0or %ity to the railroad&
-nother e*a'ple o$ a state underta,ing a di$$i%ult pro0e%t on its own without
any pri!ate %apital was the Lirginia5s .lue 3idge /ine& 1laudius 1roFet o$
Fran%e5s M%ole Polyte%hniCue, who had introdu%ed tea%hing o$ pro0e%ti!e
geo'etry at est Point, did the e*tre'ely di$$i%ult .lue 3idge 'ountains on
this pro0e%t&
The approa%h to the $inan%ing o$ the .alti'ore and Ihio %hara%teriFes what
)e%a'e the 'ore %o''on 'ethod& The a%t to in%orporate the .JI was
passed )y the Aaryland legislature on Fe)ruary 28, 1827& This a%t, whi%h
%onstituted the %harter o$ the %o'pany, pro!ided that the %apital o$ the
%o'pany would )e N4 'illion, in shares o$ N1OO ea%h, o$ whi%h the #tate o$
Aaryland would ta,e 1O,OOO shares and the 1ity o$ .alti'ore 9,OOO& The
re'aining 19,OOO would )e su)s%ri)ed to )y indi!iduals and %orporations&
The o$$i%ers o$ this %o'pany were gi!en power to run it as they saw $it&
.oth the state and %ity were gi!en seats on the )oard o$ dire%tors to prote%t
their in!est'ent&
Thus, we ha!e a pri!ate %o'pany, $or whi%h $ully 9O per%ent o$ the $unding
%a'e $ro' the go!ern'ent& There was no railroad pro0e%t o$ this type in the
world en!isioned at this ti'e& The attitude o$ %itiFens %ould only )e %hara%-
teriFed as wildly enthusiasti% despite the o)!ious ris,s attendant with an
untested te%hnology& In only twel!e days, 22,OOO indi!iduals su)s%ri)ed to
46,788 shares o$ sto%, in the %o'pany&
4+e 6eeral Lan 0rant System
-nother $or' o$ go!ern'ent inter!ention toe the de!elop'ent o$ a railroad
was the land grant& In the territories west o$ the -llegheny Aountains, the
Bureau of Railroad Economics, Washington, D.C.
4+e Apponaug, t+e first engine to ,ull a train in t+e state of Connecticut.
$ederal go!ern'ent still owned !ast tra%ts o$ land in the early de%ades o$ the
nineteenth %entury, and these were used to help $inan%e railroads 0ust as they
had )een used to $inan%e s%hools and %anals& The states were $ree to sell the
donated $ederal a%res to $inan%e in$rastru%ture pro0e%ts, use the a%res as
%apital to o)tain loans, or perhaps sell part o$ the land at low %ost to the
railroads and then sell o$$ the rest o$ the land at a higher pri%e on%e the
%onstru%tion o$ the railroad raised the !alue o$ the land&
The Illinois 1entral, the %ountry5s $irst 'a0or north-south line, was $inan%ed
entirely through a $ederal land grant& The land represented the se%urity $or
the sto%, and )onds o$ the %o'pany& The initial perspe%ti!e $or o)taining
%apital was through sale o$ )onds in Europe& hat happened illustrates the
o)sta%les whi%h %ontinually stood in the way o$ o)taining %apital $ro' the
'a0or )an,s in Europe&
- two-'an tea' 'ade up o$ 3o)ert J& al,er, $or'er se%retary o$ the
treasury under President Pol,, and %o'pany !i%e president Ea!id Neal were
sent $irst to tal, to Eut%h )an,ers in 3otterda' and -'sterda' and then to
England to tal, to )an,ers there& al,er was %hosen )e%ause he had )een
the author o$ $ree trade legislation> this was supposed to open doors with the
Eut%h and English )an,ers& Eespite their atte'pt at propitiation they were
turned down& The %redit rating o$ Illinois had )een )es'ir%hed )y a $ailure
to pay interest on )onds ta,en out in the 18:Os&
(owe!er, when the two returned ho'e they $ound that signi$i%ant %apital
had )een raised do'esti%ally& -$ter it was %lear there was strong de'and $or
the Illinois 1entral sto%,s, the Europeans de%ided to $orget the pre!ious
$ailure and 0u'p on )oard&
#o'e o)ser!ations a)out the $unding are ne%essary to de)un, other lies as to
the role played )y the pri!ate se%tor in this %ru%ial era o$ the de!elop'ent o$
the transportation in$rastru%ture o$ the "nited #tates; 1H the great sour%es o$
European %apital did in!est in the railroads> howe!er, they re$used to in!est
in any pri!ate %o'panies unless they had go!ern'ent )a%,ing> and 2H 'ore
$oreign %apital %a'e $ro' Fran%e and 2er'any than $ro' the .ritish& (ow-
e!er, this $oreign %apital was a $ar less signi$i%ant portion o$ the o!erall
pri!ate $unding, the !ast 'a0ority %o'ing $ro' indi!idual -'eri%ans&
4+e Eucation of Syl"anus 4+ayer
(a!ing de'onstrated the role o$ go!ern'ent in $a%ilitating the $unding o$
the railroads, we now turn to an e*a'ination o$ the role played )y est
Point and the "&#& -r'y 1orp o$ Engineers in de!eloping the e%ono'i%
in$rastru%ture o$ )oth the "nited #tates and o$ 3ussia, an i'portant
-'eri%an ally in the period leading into the "&#& 1i!il ar&
In the history o$ the "nited #tates, the ar o$ 1812 played a deter'ining
role in what 'ight )e %hara%teriFed as the purest appli%ation o$ repu)li%an
nation-)uilding the world had e!er seen& Not only was the #e%ond .an, o$
the "&#& a)le to o)tain a %harter in 1816 a$ter the re%hartering o$ the First
.an, had )een !etoed in 1811, )ut also the "&#& 'ilitary a%ade'y at est
Point, esta)lished in 18O2, )egan to ser!e a nation-)uilding purpose&
#yl!anus Thayer, who )e%a'e superintendent o$ est Point a$ter the ar o$
1812, had internaliFed the pri'ary lesson o$ that war; the ne%essity o$
e%ono'i% de!elop'ent to the national se%urity& Thayer played an a)solutely
%ru%ial role in the su%%ess$ul de!elop'ent o$ the nation&
Thayer, )orn in 1789, was truly a %hild o$ the ar o$ Independen%e& #e!en
o$ his un%les on his 'other5s side parti%ipated in the war& -t the age o$ nine,
he went to li!e with one o$ his un%les& It is %lear that the 3e!olutionary war
e*perien%e was a %onstant su)0e%t in the household& Euring this period,
Thayer )e%a'e a%Cuainted with 2eneral .en0a'in Pier%e, the $ather o$ the
$uture President& (e i'pressed Pier%e, who su%%eeded in getting an
appoint'ent to est Point $or Thayer&
Thayer, who e*%elled in s%ien%e, distinguished hi'sel$ )y graduating $irst in
his %lass& -t est Point, he )elonged to a philosophi%al so%iety whi%h was
'ade up o$ !ery pro'inent %itiFens& It was %alled the "nited #tates Ailitary
Philosophi%al #o%iety and was $ounded )y Jonathan illia's, the $irst
superintendent o$ est Point, and a relati!e o$ .en0a'in Fran,lin& Its
original %onstitution pres%ri)es that the 'eetings )e held at the site o$ the
'ilitary a%ade'y& It was open to +any gentle'an, whether a 'ilitary 'an or
not&+ It e'phasiFed the dis%ussion and deli)eration on the 'ost ad!an%ed
s%ienti$i% ideas o$ the day&
#o'e idea o$ the i'portan%e o$ the so%iety is gained )y re!iewing the
attendan%e at a 'eeting in 18O8& Those present in%luded Eeitt 1linton,
then go!ernor o$ New Kor,, 1hie$ Justi%e John Aarshall, illia' Eaton, the
hero o$ Eerne, To)ias /ear, later %onsul at -lgiers, 3o)ert Fulton and
1aptain Tho'as Tru*ton, "#N&
-l'ost i''ediately a$ter graduating $ro' est Point, Thayer was thrust
into the ar o$ 1812& Ine o$ his early warti'e e*perien%es had an indeli)le
e$$e%t& In a poorly planned e*pedition to 1anada, Thayer wat%hed the New
Kor, 'ilitia sit )a%, and do nothing while regulars were de%i'ated )y the
ene'y& This was )y no 'eans atypi%al during the war& Thayer ,new that
the %ondition o$ the 'ilitary was a disaster& (is solution was to reCuest to
tra!el to Fran%e to o)tain the 'ost ad!an%ed 'ilitary and s%ienti$i% ,nowl-
edge a!aila)le& (e ,new that this was urgent $or the de$ense o$ li)erty& This
was %ertainly one o$ the 'ost 'o'entous de%isions in the history o$ the
"nited #tates&
Thayer spent one and a hal$ years in Fran%e& (e arri!ed $i!e days a$ter the
)attle o$ aterloo, $inding Fran%e o%%upied )y the allied ar'ies that had
de$eated Napoleon& hile not i''ediately a)le to attend the M%ole Poly-
te%hniCue )e%ause it had )een shut down due to the de$eat o$ Napoleon,
Thayer was a)le to lo%ate )oo,s written )y the top Fren%h s%ientists, whi%h
he was to )ring )a%, to est Point&
Two in%idents whi%h o%%urred while he was in Fran%e %ouldn5t help )ut ha!e
a signi$i%ant i'pa%t on Thayer& (e related one in a letter to his 'entor
2eneral Joseph 2& #wi$t& This was an in%ident in whi%h ellington attended
the opera& Finding no )o*es uno%%upied he de%ided to sit in the Ping5s
personal )o*& This was too 'u%h $or the Parisians, who )egan to shout,
+Li!e le 3oi, Q )as les -nglais&+ Thayer was delighted when ellington le$t
i''ediately&
The other in%ident also %on%erned the .ritish& Pnowing that there were a
nu')er o$ -'eri%ans in Paris, so'e .ritish o$$i%ers de%ided to %ele)rate the
o$ the )urning o$ ashington, E&1& during the ar o$ 1812& This pro!o,ed
2eneral in$ield #%ott, who responded at a dinner o$ allied soldiers with a
toast to the !i%tory at New Irleans whi%h had resulted in the de$eat o$ the
.ritish& -t the dinner, 1ount Lorontso! o$ 3ussia o$$ered to ha!e the
I'perial 2uard prote%t #%ott i$ the .ritish retaliated& #%ott de%lined the
o$$er, saying he didn5t want to get the %ount in trou)le with his %o''ander&
2etting a good taste o$ the .ritish o%%upiers 'ust ha!e only intensi$ied
Thayer5s deter'ination that -'eri%a )e%o'e 'ilitarily se%ure& (e single-
'indedly s%oured )oo,stores $or the writings o$ the leading s%ientists and
'ilitary strategists& (e also pi%,ed the )rains o$ anyone he %ould $ind to tal,
to& (e %on!in%ed 1roFet, a pro$essor at the M%ole Polyte%hniCue, to %o'e to
the "nited #tates to tea%h at est Point&
4+ayer at 1est /oint
hen he got )a%, to the "nited #tates, Thayer was appointed #uperinten-
dent o$ est Point& (e trans$or'ed that institution i''ediately, introdu%ing
what he ,new to )e essential $or produ%ing the leaders !ital $or the nation&
Thayer5s %urri%ulu', 'odeled e*pli%itly on the M%ole Polyte%hniCue,
e'phasiFed a %lassi%al s%ienti$i% edu%ation& Ine o$ the inno!ations was to
,eep %lass siFes s'all, so that e!ery %adet %ould parti%ipate e!ery day&
hat 'ade Thayer instru'ental in the e%ono'i% de!elop'ent o$ the nation
was the $a%t that, without the introdu%tion o$ s%ienti$i% edu%ation at est
Point, those $or%es who didn5t want this de!elop'ent to o%%ur would
pro)a)ly ha!e )een su%%ess$ul&
"ntil the Ja%,sonians wre%,ed the syste' put into pla%e )y President John
6uin%y -da's, est Pointers wor,ed on the 1hesapea,e and Ihio 1anal,
the Aorris 1anal, the Eelaware and 3aritan 1anal, the .alti'ore and Ihio
3ailroad G.JIH, and the estern and -tlanti% 3ailroad, to na'e only a $ew&
.y 1847, out o$ a total o$ 9:O est Point graduates, 241 had wor,ed as %i!il
engineers on at least one in$rastru%tural pro0e%t&
0eorge 1as+ington 1+istler
Fourteen ar'y engineers wor,ed on the .JI& Two o$ these, & A%Neill
and 2eorge ashington histler, )e%a'e the leading railroad engineers in
the %ountry& histler was %hosen )y the 3ussians to head up the #t& Peters-
)urg to Aos%ow railroad pro0e%t& The 3ussian authorities %hose the -'eri-
%an histler only a$ter a thorough e*a'ination o$ European railroads&
Interestingly, the 3ussians, dee'ing this so i'portant to their interests, also
%hose to ha!e the go!ern'ent $inan%e it&
2eorge ashington histler was possi)ly the greatest railroad engineer o$
his era& - loo, at his %areer will gi!e a ri%her understanding o$ the Cuality o$
his est Point edu%ation and its i'pa%t not only on the "&#&-& )ut on 3ussia
as well&
histler entered est Point on July 41, 181:, at the age o$ $ourteen& (e
re'ained as a student $or $i!e years& Iut o$ a %lass o$ 4O, he graduated
nu')er one in drawing, nu')er $our in des%ripti!e geo'etry, nu')er $i!e in
drill, nu')er ele!en in philosophy and engineering, nu')er twel!e in
'athe'ati%s and nu')er ten in general 'erit& (e was also an a%%o'plished
'usi%ian& (is reputation was that o$ a near-pro$essional on the $lute&
-'ong his $riends he had earned the ni%,na'e +Pipes&+ (e also was an
a%%o'plished artist, )ut it was le$t to his son to $ully de!elop this talent&
histler5s )iographer 2&/& Lose eloCuently des%ri)es this aspe%t o$
histler5s %hara%ter;
These tastes in histler appeared to )e less the result o$ study on his
part than the spontaneous outgrowth o$ a re$ined and deli%ate organ-
iFation, and so $ar %onstitutional with hi' that they see'ed to tinge
his entire %hara%ter& They %ontinued to )e de!eloped till past the
'eridian o$ li$e, and a'id all the pressure o$ gra!er duties $urnished a
'ost delight$ul rela*ation&
-$ter graduating on July 1, 1819, histler did topographi%al duty $or eight
'onths and then returned to est Point as an assistant pro$essor o$ des%rip-
ti!e geo'etry and drawing& -$ter one year o$ this, he was detailed on
topographi%al duty $or the -r'y and wor,ed with the %o''ission tra%ing
the international )oundary )etween /a,e #uperior and the /a,e o$ the
oods& - signi$i%ant a'ount o$ his ti'e was spent in 'a,ing sur!eys,
plans, and esti'ates $or internal i'pro!e'ents&
In 1828, the .JI 3ailroad 1o'pany 'ade a spe%ial reCuest $or the ser!i%es
o$ /ieutenant histler& (e, along with two other ar'y engineers, Jonathan
Pnight and illia' 2i))s A%Neill, was sent to England to e*a'ine the
railroads o$ that %ountry& -$ter returning, histler personally super!ised
.JI %onstru%tion until it was $ar enough along so that he was $reed up to
wor, on another pro0e%t, the .alti'ore and #usCuehanna 3ailroad& (e then
'o!ed on to New Jersey to aid in the %onstru%tion o$ the Paterson and
(udson 3i!er 3ailroad& In 1844 he 'o!ed to 1onne%ti%ut to ta,e %harge o$
the lo%ation o$ the railroad $ro' Pro!iden%e, 3hode Island to #tonington,
1onne%ti%ut&
-t the end o$ 1844, histler resigned his %o''ission, and 'o!ed to /owell,
Aassa%husetts to ta,e a position o$ engineer to the Proprietors o$ /o%,s and
1anals& This position ga!e hi' the dire%tion o$ the 'a%hine shops, whi%h
had )een set up prin%ipally $or the %onstru%tion o$ lo%o'oti!e engines& In
1847, the %ondition o$ the #tonington railroad de'anded his %ontinual
presen%e& hile wor,ing there he was %onsulted a)out to nu'erous other
pro0e%ts in di$$erent parts o$ the %ountry> pro'inent a'ong these was the
estern 3ailroad o$ Aassa%husetts&
This was the %rowning a%hie!e'ent o$ histler5s engineering in the "nited
#tates& It was to run $ro' or%ester through #pring$ield and Pitts$ield to
-l)any, New Kor, and had to o!er%o'e the highlands )etween 1onne%ti%ut
and the (udson, thus %onne%ting .oston to what was then %alled the +2reat
est&+ The su%%ess o$ this pro0e%t 'ar,ed histler as one o$ the $ore'ost
engineers o$ his ti'e&
hat was realiFed $ro' this e*perien%e in the "nited #tates was that the
railroad, to Cuote histler5s )iographer,
was not to )e %on$ined to the wor,ing o$ an already esta)lished tra$$i%
in densely populated regions, )ut it would )e o$ eCual ser!i%e in
awa,ening the energies o$ unde!eloped %ountries, in )ringing the !ast
interior regions o$ the %ontinents into %o''uni%ation with the sea-
)oard, in opening 'ar,ets to lands whi%h )e$ore were )eyond the
rea%h o$ %o''er%e&
Railroas in Russia
3ussian leaders soon re%ogniFed the ad!antages o$ railroad %onstru%tion $or
ta'ing their !ast territory> an atte'pt to indu%e pri!ate %apitalists to
%onstru%t lines o%%urred !ery early& The %Far o$$ered indu%e'ents, whi%h
in%luded guaranteeing to shareholders a 'ini'u' return o$ : per%ent, and
proposed to gi!e grants o$ all the land through whi%h the lines passed and all
the ti')er and raw 'aterials& -lso the rails and rolling sto%, %ould )e
i'ported duty $ree& hether or not the %Far had studied -'eri%an #yste'
e%ono'i%s, his approa%h %ohered with the dirigist 'ethod )eing applied in
the "&#&-& at the ti'e&
hile this approa%h ena)led 3ussia to )uild a nu')er o$ short railroads, a
proposed line $ro' #t& Peters)urg to Aos%ow reCuired a di$$erent approa%h&
Funding would %o'e entirely $ro' the state&
ith a pro0e%t o$ this i'portan%e, it was dee'ed ne%essary that the 'ost
ad!an%ed ,nowledge )e o)tained& #o the %Far de%ided to send 1he!alier Ee
2erstner, who had )uilt a short railroad, to the "nited #tates to o)tain
in$or'ation %on%erning its railroads& The 'ore Ee 2erstner studied, the
'ore i'pressed he was with the appli%a)ility to 3ussia o$ what he ter'ed
the -'eri%an syste' o$ )uilding and operating railroads& In one o$ his
letters he noted that, despite higher la)or and 'aterial %osts, the -'eri%an
railroads were %onstru%ted 'ore %heaply& (e attri)uted this to the use o$
steeper grades G94 $eet to the 'ileH and sharp %ur!es G6OO $eet radiusH> to
la)or-sa!ing 'a%hinery, parti%ularly to a stea' e*%a!ating 'a%hine> and to
the -'eri%an #yste' o$ wooden )ridge )uilding&
(e wrote in his letters that,
the superstru%ture o$ the railroads in -'eri%a is 'ade %on$or'a)le to
the e*pe%ted tra$$i%, and %osts 'ore or less a%%ordingly&
(e %on%ludes,
1onsidering the whole, it appears the %heapness o$ the -'eri%an
railroad has its $oundation in the pra%ti%al sense whi%h predo'inates
in its %onstru%tion&
(e noted the %heap 'anage'ent o$ the -'eri%an roads, the less e*pensi!e
ad'inistrati!e ser!i%e, the use o$ the eight-wheeled %ars, and the $our-
wheeled tru%, under the engines, and %on%luded;
In 'y opinion, it would )e o$ great ad!antage $or e!ery railroad
%o'pany o$ Europe to pro%ure at least one train li,e those used in
-'eri%a& Those %o'panies, howe!er, whose wor,s are yet under
%onstru%tion, I %an ad!ise with $ullest %on!i%tion, to pro%ure all their
lo%o'oti!e engines and tenders $ro' -'eri%a, and to %onstru%t their
%ars a$ter the -'eri%an 'odel&
Eue to the i'portan%e o$ the pro0e%t, Ee 2erstner5s report was not dee'ed
su$$i%ient to 'a,e the $inal de%ision& Further e!iden%e was needed> so it
was de%ided that two engineer-o$$i%ers would )e sent to !arious %ountries in
Europe and to the "nited #tates to sele%t the )est syste' $or 3ussia& These
indi!iduals %o'pletely %on%urred with Ee 2erstner on the %hoi%e o$ the
-'eri%an syste'& They also indi%ated that o$ all the engineers they spo,e
with they were 'ost i'pressed histler5s a)ility& This led to an in!itation
$ro' the 3ussians to )e the %onsulting engineer on the #t& Peters)urg to
Aos%ow railroad&
-t this ti'e, the 3ussian engineering ser!i%e was %onsidered se%ond to none
in the world& The syste' $or sele%tion was )ased on 'erit, without regard to
so%ial standing, and the training e'phasiFed the 'ost ad!an%ed s%ienti$i%
ideas& These were the 'en that Aa0or histler would super!ise in the
%onstru%tion o$ the railroad&
-n insight into how histler approa%hed this wor, is e')odied in the
rigorous argu'ent with whi%h he %on!in%ed the 3ussians to adopt the
standard tra%, gauge o$ $our $oot eight in%hes instead o$ the si* $oot gauge
they $a!ored& To Cuote Lose again;
Aa0or histler re0oined in a report whi%h is one o$ the $inest 'odels
o$ an engineering argu'ent e!er written, and in whi%h we ha!e,
perhaps the )est !iew o$ the Cuality o$ his 'ind& In this do%u'ent, no
point is o'itted> ea%h part o$ the Cuestion is handled with the 'ost
%onsu''ate s,ill> the )earing o$ the se!eral parts upon the whole is
shown in the %learest possi)le 'anner, and in a style whi%h %ould only
%o'e $ro' one who, $ro' his own ,nowledge was thoroughly
$a'iliar with all the details, not only o$ the railroad, )ut o$ the
lo%o'oti!e as well&
In this report the history o$ the gauge is gi!en, with the origin o$ the
standard o$ $our $eet eight and one hal$ in%hes& The Cuestion o$
strength, sta)ility and %apa%ity o$ %ars, o$ the di'ensions, proportions,
and power o$ engines, the speed o$ trains, resistan%es o$ 'otion,
weight and strength o$ rails, the %ost o$ the roadway, and the re'o!al
o$ snow, are %are$ully %onsidered> the !arious %lai's o$ the ad!o%ates
$or a wider gauge are $airly and %riti%ally e*a'ined> and while the
errors o$ his opponents are laid )are in the 'ost unsparing 'anner, the
whole is done in a spirit so entirely unpre0udi%ed, and so e!ident a
desire $or si'ple truth, as to %arry %on!i%tion to any $air-'inded
person&
The result was the adoption o$ the gauge re%o''ended )y histler&
-nother ele'ent o$ the pro0e%t was the $urnishing o$ the rolling sto%, and
$i*ed 'a%hinery $or the shops )y the -'eri%an $ir' o$ inans, (arrison J
Eastwi%, on the re%o''endation o$ histler& Through his diplo'ati%
e$$orts, large 'oney ad!an%es were pro!ided whi%h $a%ilitated this aspe%t o$
the pro0e%t&
In early 18:7, 1Far Ni%holas !isited the 'e%hani%al wor,s at -le*andro$$-
s,y, where the rolling sto%, was )eing 'ade )y Aessrs& inans& The %ondi-
tion o$ the operation so pleased hi' that he %on$erred the de%oration o$ the
Irder o$ #t& -nne on Aa0or histler&
histler o!ersaw !irtually the entirety o$ the pro0e%t, re$using to lea!e his
post despite e!en when he %a'e down with %holera during an epide'i% in
18:8& This wea,ened hi', and )y the ne*t spring his %ondition had
worsened, resulting in his death on -pril 9, 18:9&
Ine o$ the people who ,new hi' well during this period said o$ hi';
It was not only through his s,ill, a)ility and e*perien%e as an engineer,
that Aa0or histler was parti%ularly Cuali$ied $or and e'inently
su%%ess$ul in the i'portant tas, he per$or'ed in 3ussia> his 'ilitary
training and )earing, his polished 'anners, good hu'our, sense o$
honor, ,nowledge o$ a language GFren%hH in whi%h he %ould %on!erse
with o$$i%ers o$ the go!ern'ent> his resolution in adhering to what he
thought was right, and in 'eeting di$$i%ulties only to sur'ount the'>
with other ad'ira)le personal Cualities-'ade hi' soon, and during his
whole residen%e in 3ussia, 'u%h li,ed and trusted )y all persons )y
who' he was ,nown $ro' the E'peror down to the peasant& #u%h is
the reputation he le$t )ehind hi' and whi%h is gi!en to hi' in 3ussia
to this day&
-nother tri)ute to histler )y the 3ussian go!ern'ent was that go!ern'ent
o$$i%ials did not allow any alteration in his plans& This in%luded other pro-
0e%ts he wor,ed on, as well as the railroad& -t this ti'e, with the e*%eption
o$ John 6uin%y -da's, histler was held in the highest estee' o$ any
-'eri%an&
-t the heart o$ the de!elop'ent o$ the railroad in the "nited #tates was the
%lear re%ognition on the part o$ 'en li,e John 6uin%y -da's, #yl!anus
Thayer, 2eorge ashington histler, and 'any others that great pro0e%ts o$
in$rastru%ture were the sine qua non $or the !ery sur!i!al o$ the repu)li%an
$or' o$ go!ern'ent& Freedo' would ha!e )een without 'eaning i$ the
nation was in any way %o'pelled to su)'it to the insane di%tates o$ the
European oligar%hy and its agents in -'eri%a&
The lessons $ro' the e*perien%e o$ the "nited #tates in the period o$
appro*i'ately 1827 through the 1i!il ar are !alua)le )oth $or those
nations who ha!e re%ently shed the yo,e o$ %o''unis' and $or those Third
orld nations who, despite their $or'al independen%e, ha!e not yet o!er-
thrown the yo,e o$ en$or%ed underde!elop'ent& There is no e!iden%e that
the "nited #tates underwent the ,ind o$ austerity to whi%h, $or e*a'ple, the
nation o$ Poland is now )eing su)0e%ted )y the li,es o$ (ar!ard $ree trader
Je$$rey #a%hs& In the %ontrary, the )ene$its $or the nation were $elt Cui%,ly
in ter's o$ an a%ross-the-)oard in%rease in the standard o$ li!ing and o!erall
in%rease in national wealth& Pro)a)ly the 'a0or reason $or this was the $a%t
that those indi!iduals who were the dri!ing $or%e )ehind it were not as easy
to su%,er as people are today&
I$ the "nited #tates had not adopted what )e%a'e ,nown as the -'eri%an
#yste' o$ politi%al e%ono'y )ut re'ained at the 'er%y o$ the .ritish, the
internal i'pro!e'ents we ha!e dis%ussed would ne!er ha!e o%%urred&
Today5s newly $reed nations ha!e to see that they possess e!erything
ne%essary $or de!elop'ent, as long as they are under no illusions a)out the
IAF and orld .an,, and other institutions that will steal e!erything that
isn5t nailed down i$ per'itted&
Perhaps you are wondering how the "nited #tates %ould ha!e )e%o'e the
prin%ipal )a%,er o$ this s%a' today, in light o$ what our nation a%%o'plished
earlier in its own de!elop'ent& "n$ortunately, %orrupt indi!iduals and
traitors stole the $ruits o$ the -'eri%an #yste' and are utiliFing the' to
aug'ent the wealth and power o$ the !ery $or%es that were de$eated in the
ar o$ Independen%e& The !ery sa'e $or%es that ga!e eastern Europe and
3ussia %o''unis' are )ehind the $ree 'ar,et& It is 'y heart$elt hope, that
those who o!erthrew %o''unis' will )ring to li$e in their %ountries the
%o''it'ent to $reedo' that was e')odied in the $ight to )uild the "nited
#tates, whi%h in turn %an re!i!e that spirit in the ho'e o$ its origin&
Early Stages of Rail)ay De"elo,ment in t+e -nite States
In 184O, $ollowing the $irst de%ade o$ rail-)uilding in the "nited #tates, total
tra%, 'ileage in%reased $ro' 24 to 2,8O8, with hea!y de!elop'ent along the
-tlanti% 1oast o$ the Northeast& Euring the sa'e de%ade, the "&#& popula-
tion dou)led& The de%ade o$ the 189Os saw the western and southern e*pan-
sion o$ the railroad grid, and the $irst trans%ontinental rail lin, was %o'-
pleted in 1869& .y 189O, all the population %enters o$ the %ountry were
ser!i%ed& .etween 184O and 189O, -'eri%a5s population in%reased $i!e$old&
#&7$: 8%&$& miles #&9$: (%$8# miles
#&'$: :$%'8' miles
#&;$: 98%(88 miles
#&&$: (:%8'; miles
#&($: #'$%&($ miles
American Association of Railroads
<o) Marylan's Railroas 1ere 6inance
The state o$ Aaryland5s N9OO,OOO pur%hase o$ .alti'ore and Ihio 3ailroad
)onds in 1828 was the $irst state in!est'ent o$ its ,ind& This was $ollowed
in 1846 )y a state pur%hase o$ N4 'illion in )onds, %onditioned upon the
pay'ent o$ 6 per%ent di!idends, with the pro!ision that all e*%ess earnings
should )e %redited to the indi!idual sto%,holders, one o$ the $irst issues o$
pre$erred sto%, in the %ountry (American Railroad Journal Lol& 698H&
In 1844, the state also too, N9OO,OOO o$ the sto%, o$ the ashington )ran%h
o$ the .JI, ha!ing $irst e*a%ted the reCuire'ent that an eCual su)s%ription
)e o)tained $ro' other sour%es, and a )onus o$ gross re%eipts& The se%ond
su)s%ription to the .JI was paya)le in 'oney to )e raised $ro' 6 per%ent
%urren%y )onds, whi%h were reCuired to )e o$$ered in Europe $irst&
To pro!ide a sin,ing $und $or interest it was reCuired that the )onds )e sold
at a net pre'iu' o$ 2O per%ent& These ter's pro!ed i'pra%ti%a)le, and a
railroad issue o$ pound sterling )onds whi%h )ore 9 per%ent interest were
su)stituted& -n a'ount o$ )onds eCual to N4,2OO,OOO was issued dire%tly to
the %o'pany in pay'ent o$ the state su)s%ription and interest %harges, a
guarantee o$ prin%ipal and interest )eing e*a%ted $ro' the railroad& E$$orts
to sell these )onds in /ondon pro!ed di$$i%ult, as the 'ar,et was unsettled,
and sales were i'possi)le e*%ept at pri%es ruinous to the %redit o$ )oth the
%o'pany and the state&
Aaryland also 'ade s'all su)s%riptions to the .alti'ore and #usCuehanna,
-nnapolis and El,ridge and the Eastern #hore railroads&
Aaryland aided the .alti'ore and #usCuehanna )y a dire%t loan o$
N1,879,OOO& In 1847, Eelaware loaned N11O,OOO $or two years to the
il'ington and #usCuehanna& It also loaned N8O,79: in state )onds to the
Philadelphia, il'ington and .alti'ore 3ailroad GAessage o$ illia' .&
1ooper, House Journal, 18:4> House Journal, 1899, p& 2O:H> N17O,OOO
N2OO,OOO to the Eelaware to the .rea,water and Fran,$ort, and N:OO,OOO to
the Jun%tion and .rea,water GSenate Journal, 1891H&
6eeral Lan 0rants to t+e States u, to #&9( 2in acres3
0rants for Internal Im,ro"e-
State or 4erritory ments 2Canals% Ri"ers3 Railroa 0rants

Ihio 1,2:4,OO1 & & & & & &
Indiana 1,6O9,861 & & & & & & R
Illinois 9OO,OOO 2,999,O94
Aissouri 9OO,OOO 1,819,:49
-la)a'a 9OO,OOO 2,442,918
Aississippi 9OO,OOO 1,687,94O
/ouisiana 9OO,OOO 1,162,98O
Ai%higan 1,29O,OOO 4,O96,OOO
-r,ansas 9OO,OOO 1,:69,297
Florida 9OO,OOO 1,81:,:OO
Iowa 1,489,O78 4,:96,OOO
is%onsin 1,O69,471 1,622,8OO
1ali$ornia 9OO,OOO & & & & & & RR
Ainnesota Territory 4:O,OOO :,:16,OOO
4otal #$%&(;%:## 89%7'7%$#:
R Federal lands in Ihio and Indiana had already )een disposed o$ )e$ore
railroads )e%a'e pra%ti%a)le
RR No railroads yet )uilt in 1ali$ornia