Nostalgia & History > Railroad Utah

I did a Google image search for Railroad Utah and got a number of images. Five of these images are below.

Picture 1 is from the website,

http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/online_books/hh/40/hh40q.htm

The following excerpt is from the above website,

“At Promontory the afternoon of May 7 was sultry and the sky heavy with rain clouds, which annoyed the photographers trying to capture the climactic scenes of construction. The Stanford Special arrived with an array of dignitaries from California and Nevada headed by Leland Stanford.

Also aboard were the ceremonial trappings to be used in uniting the rails. There was a golden spike presented by David Hewes, San Francisco construction magnate. Intrinsically worth $350, it was engraved with the names of the C.P. Directors, sentiments appropriate to the occasion, and, on the head, the notation ‘The Last Spike.’ There was another gold spike, presented by the San Francisco News Letter; a silver spike brought by U.S. Commissioner J. W. Haines as Nevada's contribution; and a spike of iron, silver, and gold brought by Gov. A. P. K. Safford to represent Arizona. (Arizonians knew nothing of it. Safford had not yet taken office and had never been in Arizona.) Finally, there was a sliver-plated sledge presented by the Pacific Union Express Company, and a polished laurel tie presented by West Evans, the Central Pacific's tie contractor.

The festive mood of the Stanford Special noticeably dampened when Jack Casement broke the news that the Union Pacific could not hold the ceremony on May 8, as planned, and would not be ready until May 10. The Stanford party faced the prospect of spending the weekend on the bleak Promontory. To make matters worse, rain began falling. It continued for 2 days, turning Promontory Summit into a sea of mud. Stanford wired the unwelcome news to San Francisco, but too late. The citizens there had already started celebrating. Undismayed, they celebrated for 3 days.

Casement's explanation for the delay was that the trains bringing the dignitaries from the East had been held up in Weber Canyon. Heavy rains had made the roadbed soft and had washed out a trestle. But there was another reason, too. The special train carrying Vice President Durant, Sidney Dillon, and other U.P. officials had reached Piedmont, Wyo., on May 6. A gang of 500 workers surrounded Durant's private car shouting demands for back wages. When the conductor tried to move the train out of the station, the men uncoupled Durant's car, shunted it onto a siding, and chained the wheels to the rails. Here he would stay, they said, until their pay was forthcoming. To make sure, they also took possession of the telegraph office. Durant submitted, wired Oliver Ames in Boston for the money, and paid off the strikers. He was released and managed to be at Promontory on May 10, although the severe headache he suffered that day may well have owed its origin to the experience at Piedmont.

Left in the role of host at Promontory, Casement made up an excursion train, stocked with ‘a bountiful collation and oceans of champagne,’ to take the Stanford party sightseeing. The train left Promontory Saturday morning. At Taylor's Mill the Union Pacific staged a ‘splendid luncheon’ on the banks of the Weber River. ‘The most cordial harmony and good feeling marked their entertainment and all the toasts were drank with loud applause,’ reported a correspondent. From here the party went to Ogden, rode a short distance up Weber Canyon, and spent the night in Ogden. Next day, Sunday, they returned to Promontory, boarded the Stanford Special, and pulled back to Monument Point to enjoy a repast of plover.

This same day, May 9, Casement's workers at Promontory kept busy. As the rain continued, they laid the final 2,500 feet of track, leaving a length of one rail separating their track from that of the Central Pacific. They also installed a Y for the locomotives to use in turning around.”

Continued on website.

Picture 1, “Waiting for the last rails to be laid at Promontory, May 10, 1869. Union Pacific.”

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For a Zoomit enlargement of picture 1 click on http://zoom.it/GcJW#full . Continue to click on the + button on the lower right of the picture until the enlarging stops. Use the cursor and the left mouse button to move the picture.

Picture 2 is from the website,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Utah_miners.jpg

The text to the picture says Utah miners but the text could be wrong and the men in the picture could be railroad section workers. Either way it is an interesting picture.

Picture 2, “Utah miners.”

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For a Zoomit enlargement of picture 2 click on http://zoom.it/IjWT#full .

Picture 3 is from the website,

http://www.fotolibra.com/gallery/1017393/construction-train-on-the-union-pacific-railroad-1868

Picture 3, “Construction train on the Union Pacific Railroad 1868.

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For a Zoomit enlargement of picture 3 click on http://zoom.it/LfDH . If you could see the men’s faces you could check to see if any of the men are also in the Union Pacific construction picture on the website,

http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,3424190

Picture 4 is from the website,

http://quarriesandbeyond.org/states/ca/quarry_photo/ca-colusa_photos.html

Picture 4, “Quarry of Colusa Stone Company in upper part of Chico sandstone beds. One-half mile east of Sites, Colusa County, California. September 16, 1900. ID. Stanton, T. W. 024 stw00024”

Is picture 4 a picture of construction of railroad trestles?

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For a Zoomit enlargement of picture 4 click on http://zoom.it/opvY#full .

Picture 5 is from the website,

http://gatheringgardiners.blogspot.com/2012/11/henry-albert-hill-1943.html

The following excerpt is from the above website,

“Henry was born 26 June 1857 in Ogden, UT to William Hill and Sarah Ann Sturgess. Henry married Verena (aka Franey aka Frany) Bachman and together had 10 children in Ogden, UT. Henry worked for the railroad in Ogden, UT. I met Henry's niece in the 1970's, and she was reluctant to tell me Henry was a drinker at first. I think he must have been a functional alcoholic. When he died, the newspaper printed that he was 'the most popular trainman in Ogden'. He must have avoided having his photo taken--they had a hard time finding one for his funeral. They ended up blowing up the photo of him standing by the train. Horace's grandson, Ken, had the funeral photo, and I was happy to find out that I had been correct in picking him out of the train photo. Where did Henry and Frany live? I have a couple of references to West 21st as where the family home was. The various references convince me that the home was where West 20th and West 21st streets intersected. In the 1910 census their street reads "unnamed." Henry died 12 April 1904 at at 47 from cancer of the liver.”

Picture 5, “Henry Albert Hill, 3rd from left. Full size photograph, Southern Pacific Yards, Ogden Utah.”

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For a Zoomit enlargement of picture 5 click on http://zoom.it/ENxk#full .

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