"Nevada's Central Pacific Railroad"

"Nevada's Central Pacific Railroad" by Dennis Cassinelli, © Nevada Appeal, June 1, 2022. (History Article)

" ... Being a construction person, I cannot help but admire what was accomplished by these people between April 1868 and May 1869. Without heavy construction equipment, these men built a railroad that crossed the entire expanse of the state of Nevada in a little more than one year. The roadbed was flat and smooth, and the grading was done with Chinese laborers using wheelbarrows, picks and shovels. The roadbed was built up by taking material from a 'borrow ditch' on either side and throwing it up onto the roadbed. In a hill or cut section, the material was thrown up over the side and not hauled long distances as it is in modern construction. The original roadbed didn't even have ballast between the ties in many areas. This was added later when the line was completed and ballast material could be brought in on railroad cars. ... So far, I have found several railroad spikes, a broken brake shoe, some track plates and a remarkable cover plate from a journal box with the inscription 'C.P.R.R. — 1875.' ... " [More]

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