Last week we focused on the history of the USPS,
but what came long before that? Railroads. In the material handling
business, railroad transport history is very important because railroad
transport was what really started the game for us. Shipping by railroad
was the first efficient means of a “load transfer system” if you think
about it.
The History of Rail Transport
Who Invented Railroads?
Rail-based transportation systems using man or horse power date way back
to the ancient Greeks. Wagonways were the next major systems that
operated roughly from 1500-1800.
The steam engine changed everything though. Starting in the 1810’s,
several people in Britain and the United States suggested ideas about
building some type of railroad system. In 1815, John Stevens built a
test track and ran a test locomotive around it in his summer home
estate. Britain’s first railroad systems were popping up around the same
time. Americans actually learned how to build railroads by carefully
studying British railroad technology.
How has Railroad Transport Evolved?
Railroads played a huge role in the development of the United States
from the Industrial Revolution in the Northeast and to the settlement of
the West:
The United States’ very first railroad systems started in the South
and only had short lines connecting cotton regions to a port on an
ocean or river. There were also railroads that transported farm supplies
(grains, hogs, cattle, etc.).
The Granite Railway was one of the first railroads
constructed in 1826. It was a common freight carrier used during the
construction of the Bunker Hill Monument, primarily used to haul
granite.
Also in 1826, two major railroads were built- the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company’s Railroad, and the Mohawk and Hudson Railroad. Both carried passengers around the bend in the Erie Canal.
But the real American railroad hype began with the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1828:
The B&O Railroad was one of the oldest, largest, and most
important railroads in the history of the Atlantic region. It may not
have been the first railroad in the U.S., but it was the first common
carrier railroad and the first to offer scheduled freight and passenger services to the public.
The entire railroad was destroyed by the Panic of 1873, which was a
financial crisis that generated a depression in Europe and the United
States.
The B&O Railroad also started developing steam locomotives in
1829. These were the first American-built locomotives to run in the U.S.
And then came the ever-so-famous Pacific Railroad (the
First Transcontinental Railroad) which was a 1,907 mile railroad that
finally connected the East to the West. This railroad operated between
1863 and 1869.
During the Civil War, the railroad transportation business struggled
because of the economic crisis, which caused such hardship because the
use of a railroad was needed at that point. But instead, all railroad transport businesses basically crashed. The locomotives that did
operate were strictly for Army use- mainly for carrying large weapons
and other artillery.
Eventually during the Reconstruction Era, light shone through at the end
of the tunnel- Northern money financed and rebuilt the railroad system
throughout the South.
The railroad system became rather efficient by 1910, but the use of
trucks, automobiles, and airplanes hurt the railroad industry. Due to
several bankruptcies and consolidations, the rail system was down to
only a small handful of large operations by the 1980’s. In 1971, almost
all long-distance passenger transport shifted to Amtrak. Today, commuter
rail service is provided in the major cities like New York City,
Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and the DOC.
Why is Railroad Transport Important?
In the earlier days, railroads were the best way to transport goods
because they could operate all year round and were fast! Canals and
rivers could not run during the winter; and transportation of goods by
wagon was slow and expensive.
Railroad transport still continues to play a vital role in the U.S.
economy. Freight railroads are still used to move imports and exports,
coal, and oil.
Railroad transport also played a big role in developing new concepts of
management and brought forth giant corporations
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