Creator
Asa Whitney
Title
A Project for a Railroad to the Pacific
Coverage
New York
Publisher
G. W. Wood
Date
1849
Description
Merchant Asa Whitney saw the potential of a transcontinental railroad that would facilitate trade with Japan and China. He became a steadfast advocate for this project and tirelessly promoted it. In the late 1840’s Whitney distributed this pamphlet during lectures and visits to state legislatures to gather support for this project. Whitney’s efforts paved the way for the Pacific Railroad Surveys of the 1850’s and the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad in the 1860’s.