![]() ![]() ![]() Through Corbin, Gould and Fisk were able to meet with Grant on several occasions and tried to convince the President to increase the price of gold through reduced government sales, arguing that doing so would help improve depressed farm prices. Grant's brother-in-law and friend, Abel Corbin, hoping to influence treasury policy through his connections. ![]() Gould and Fisk began to work on a plot to purchase gold and drive up the price with the help of the government, and then sell their supplies for an immense profit before the inflated price crashed.įisk and Gould befriended President Ulysses S. Jay Gould and Jim Fisk, two investors who controlled the Erie Railroad, recognized that it was possible to corner the gold market by either predicting or influencing the government's sales. In 1869, the price of gold in the volatile New York market was determined primarily by how much of the metal the government sold per month. September 24, 1869, became known as "Black Friday" when a financial panic began in New York City after the price of gold crashed and caused financial ruin for many investors. The gold plot is the first of several scandals to take place during the Grant years. A suspicious Grant finally orders a large sale of $4 million in gold, ruining many speculators. Gould and Fisk, along with President Grant's brother-in-law, frame their argument by claiming that if the government refrains from selling gold, its value will increase and improve depressed farm prices. The panic results from the efforts of two railroad entrepreneurs, Jay Gould and James Fisk, Jr., to corner the gold market. The “Black Friday” financial panic takes place in New York City. Railroad companies would complete additional transcontinental railroads in the following decades, although the Panic of 1873 delayed construction on those projects. Under pressure from Congress, the meeting place was selected at Promontory Point, Utah. A sense of competition developed between the two companies, leading to both crews working faster and at times even leading to sabotage.Īs the project neared completion in the late 1860s, it became evident that a meeting point would have to be established, as otherwise the two companies were likely to continue building past one another. In California, Chinese immigrant laborers provided much of the necessary manpower. With the end of the Civil War, former soldiers often went west in search of work, helping to alleviate the lack of labor available in the region that had made large projects difficult to execute. troops guarded the construction crews from potential Native American attacks as workers moved across the country in temporary, military style encampments. The Union Pacific railroad began construction in Omaha, Nebraska, while the Central Pacific began in Sacramento, California. PRESIDENT TYLER RAILROAD STORY FREEThe endeavor was virtually risk free for the government, as the bonds were to be repaid and mileage requirements forced the two companies building the tracks to work quickly. The act provided government bonds to fund the project and mandated a timetable for completing railroad mileage. On July 1, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Pacific Railroad Act, calling for the construction of a railroad from the Missouri River to the Pacific Ocean. The Civil War later resulted in Southern routes being removed from consideration. Army Topographical Engineers had proposed five separate routes during the 1850s, but sectional tensions prevented construction. Celebrations and special addresses took place across the nation after a telegraph message announced the event to the world.Īgitation for the construction of a transcontinental railroad had existed since the 1840s. The Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads joined the railroad together in Promontory Point, Utah. On May 10, 1869, the transcontinental railroad was completed when a ceremonial golden spike was driven into the place where the two railroads met. The first transcontinental railroad is completed at Promontory Point, Utah, through the work of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific track crews. ![]()
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