Camryn Viljoen American History II

The Transcontinental Railroad began being built in 1869. It was created to connect the East to the West.  The Union Pacific and Central Pacific Railroads came together at Promontory Summit, Utah. The United State’s government expected the railroad to be built by private enterprises. They supported the funding through loans. The building of the railroad was affected by weather and climate. Blizzards, droughts and windstorms delayed building and made conditions for the workers a lot more dangerous and difficult. Location of the railroad had to be planned out to avoid mountains and hills (areas that were unable to successfully have a railroad running through.) As a result of the Railroad, many new towns were developing which allowed for people to move West. Often cities were built near or next to easily accessible mining ores. This created more job opportunities and made more and more people move West. Cattle farming also fueled another Western Boom. It drove more farmers West to ...

Does the past affect the present and how? Yes, the past affects the present. Every event in history, good or bad, has a ripple effect on time. If something bad happens, people and places often suffer for a while afterwards as a result. In the same way, if something good happens, people and places can benefit from it for a while. An example, is having a selfless, helpful and intelligent president in charge of the country. In the past, if the US had a good president, the economy could have grown (for example) and this could have a lasting positive impact on the US’ economy in the future as it will just continue to grow. Another example, this time negative, is a civil war. World War 2 (1939-1945) damaged American resources, men as well as pride. This had affected the present as the US still has rocky relationships with certain countries. The last example, is Apartheid. This was a policy of segregation in regards to race, in South Africa (1948-1991). Although apartheid officially ended...