reliable transportation. During much of the 19th century railroads dominated the

American industrial landscape. The railroad enabled people to travel farther and also

more widely. The railroad was one of the greatest technological advancements of the

Two hundred thousand miles of track were laid by 1900. The railroad began

to symbolize American prosperity. By the 1890s the rail industry was near collapse.

Expansion during the 1880s caused rate wars that took the financial strengths of some of

the strangest railroads. Regulation of the railroads was controlled by the Interstate

Commerce Act of 1887. Railroads were the first industry to be watched under the federal

government. Between 1893 and 1897 one fourth of the nations mileage sank into

receivership. The railroads affected were the: Union Pacific, Northern Pacific, the

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe, Erie, and the Philadelphia and Reading.

For two decades rail managers had tried unsuccessfully for some form of

regulation to take away the criticism put upon them. In the phrase of Albro Martin

conditions unique to the era. As more railroads reached cities and towns competitive

percent and the surplus 188 percent. More a warrior than a diplomat, Harriman moved

Harriman had his top engineer John B. Berry transform lines in Wyoming.

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 809
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)