Linking+the+Nation-snow

__ The Transcontinental Railroad __ The building of railroads started after Abraham Lincoln signed the Pacific Railway Act. This act let two companies (the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific) build a transcontinental railroad. To make sure it was built quickly, the government offered the companies land. The two companies quickly began competing for land and money. __ Railroads Spur Growth __ The Transcontinental Railroad was only the first of many. Soon, railroads were overlapping the nation everywhere. The railroads provided new technologies and job opportunities, thus prompting American industrial growth. Before the 1880s each state set its clock according to the sun’s position at noon. This interfered with train scheduling. Crashed could occur due to scheduling errors caused by time differences. To fix this problem the American Railway Association divided the country into four time zones. The government ratified this change in 1918.