Trains LIVE — The new golden spike — 10-11-2023 — The Transcontinental Railroad did more than join East and West. Completion of the line from Omaha, Neb., to Sacramento, Calif., on May 10, 1869, condensed the United States. No longer did it take 6 months to travel from coast to coast; with the driving of the gold spike at Promontory, Utah, crossing the country was reduced to 7 days.
The Transcontinental Railroad story is not just one of physical construction, but of thousands of people who moved earth by hand, lifted sections of rail, drove spikes, built bridges, and bored tunnels. The work was hard. The work conditions were brutal. Among the work crews were immigrants from China and Ireland, former Civil War soldiers, and freed slaves. To this day, most of these people are forgotten, even though their efforts changed America forever [see “Transcontinental Railroad: Building track,” Trains.com, July 12, 2023].
Utah’s Golden Spike Foundation is working to remember the faceless who actually built the Transcontinental Railroad. The foundation commissioned noted artist Douwe Blumberg to sculpt a 43.3-foot-tall golden spike memorial recognizing these forgotten railroad workers.
The spike features 74 faces of individuals who worked to build the Transcontinental Railroad. The memorial will be placed in a new park along Interstate 15 outside Brigham City, Utah [see “New Golden Spike Monument en route to Utah,” News Wire, Oct. 4, 2023].
Come along as Trains LIVE explores the new golden spike.
Trains LIVE is a regular video program, recorded live and unscripted from Kalmbach Media. The series began in July 2022.
Trains LIVE features Bob Lettenberger, Trains associate editor, Kalmbach Media staff, and guests talking about railroads and trains in a casual, behind-the-scenes format. On Trains LIVE we will ask the questions you would like to ask and take you into places not normally open to the public. Trains LIVE also takes you on the road to museums, trackside locations and other railroad-related venues. It is presented every other Wednesday at 2 p.m. Central time.
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