RON HENGGELER

May 10, 2010
The Great Event, and signs of the times

On May 10th, 1869, four years after the Civil War ended, the United States was joined from coast to coast by a transcontinental railroad. A ceremonial final spike was driven at Promontory Summit, Utah. The travel time from Atlantic to Pacific fell from as much as six months, down to one week.
In an early example of a staged media event, two locomotives sat a mere rail tie apart from each other as crowds of people looked on. Railroad financier and former California Governor Leland Stanford drove a single golden spike into the final tie with a silver hammer.

The photos of murals and graffiti in San Francisco were taken today.

Promontory Summit, Utah May 10, 1869

 

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