History of the Big Four Men Railroad System free essay sample

The Big Four were the men known in building the Central Pacific Railroad, the western portion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in the United States. The four men were Leland Stanford who was the President, Collis P. Huntington who was the Vice President, Mark Hopkins who was the Treasurer, and Charles Crocker who was the Construction Supervisor. Leland Stanford was born in the year of 1824 in Watervliet, New York, and was raised on family farms. Stanford began law school around the year 1848. Stanford got married in 1850 and had one son. Stanford moved to California during the Gold Rush after loosing the law library his father got for him. He helped in organizing the Sacramento Library Association, which later became the Sacramento Public Library. Stanford was one of the four Sacramento, California businessmen known as â€Å"The Big Four†. They were all the investors of the Central Pacific Railroad that was incorporated on June 28, 1861. We will write a custom essay sample on History of the Big Four Men Railroad System or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page He was part of forming the Pacific Union Express Company. He was head of the railroad company which built the western part of the First Transcontinental Railroad over Sierra Nevada Mountains. Stanford and his men got control of the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1868. He was also president of the Southern Pacific Company from 1885 to 1890. Stanford was elected chairman of the Southern Pacific Railroad’s executive committee in 1890. Stanford oversaw a corporation which imported thousands of Chinese laborers in the construction of the railroad. He cut the state’s debt in half and advocated for the conservation of forests. Stanford served as Chairman of the U. S. Senate Committee on public buildings and grounds in the United States Senate. He wrote many senate bills. Leland Stanford died of heart failure at his home in Palo Alto, California on June 21, 1893. He is buried in the Stanford family mausoleum on the Stanford campus. Collis Potter Huntington was also on of the â€Å"Big Four† men of the western railroading. He was born in the year 1821. Huntington was part of building the Central Pacific Railroad which was part of the first U. S. transcontinental railroad. He also helped in leading other major interstate lines known as the Southern Pacific Railroad and the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway. The new railroad facilities by the river resulted in expansion of the town of Guyandotte, West Virginia. Huntington was also known for the CO’s Peninsula Extension. This resulted in opening a pathway for West Virginia bituminous coal. When he died, his nephews continued his work at Newport News. Most of the railroad and industrial development are very important activities in the 21st century. The Southern Pacific is now part of the Union Pacific Railroad and the CO became part of CSX Transportation. He pursued the idea of creating a rail line that would connect the America’s East and West with the three other men. In 1869, the tracks of the Central Pacific Railroad joined with the tracks of the Union Pacific Railroad and America then had a transcontinental railroad. Huntington had a friend introduce a bill in order to excuse the company from repaying money for the railroads. The Southern Pacific grew to more than 9,000 miles of track. Huntington prevented the port of San Pedro from becoming the main port of Los Angeles using the Southern Pacific Railroad. Mark Hopkins was also one of the investors involved in the Central Pacific Railroad. Hopkins was born in Henderson, Jefferson County, New York. Hopkins formed the â€Å"New England Mining and Trading Company† when the California Gold Rush began. Hopkins opened a store in Placerville, California but it did not succeed. He then opened a grocery store in Sacramento in 1850 with his friend Edward H. Miller who became secretary for the Central Pacific Railroad. In 1861, Hopkins and the rest of the Big Four men founded the Central Pacific Railroad. He was well known for his thriftiness. He was the companies treasurer. Hopkins had health problems soon after and died on a company train in Arizona. Charles Crocker was the other man that was part of the Central Pacific Railroad. Crocker was born in Troy, New York. In the year 1845, Crocker invested his money in the railroad business by opening up an independent iron forge. In 1861, he became one of the four investors in the railroad. He was the construction supervisor and president of Charles Crocker and CO. Crocker bought train plows to plow the tracks. This didn’t work because of the frequent ice on the tracks. He later built over forty miles of snow sheds to cover the tracks in Sierra Nevada Mountains. Crocker and his men got control of the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1868. Crocker was also in charge of Wells Fargo and was the president. He also took control of the Woolworth National Bank and gave it to his son. In the year 1886, Crocker got injured in a carriage accident and didn’t recover. He died two years later.