The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 30, July 1926 - April, 1927 Page: 103
330 p. : maps ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
California and the Nation, 1846-1869
Above all, California demanded adequate means of communica-
tion and transportation, so that the immigrants to the Pacific coast
might come through American territory, and not be compelled
to undergo a circuitous voyage of thousands of miles through for-
eign territory having a pestilential climate. This question was
agitated in California at mass meetings, in the press, at the con-
ventions of the political parties, and in the legislature for over a
decade. Resolutions, petitions, and memorials were adopted urg-
ing Congress to provide the desired facilities. The monster mem-
orial to Congress in 1857, it was claimed, contained 75,000 signa-
tures. All these appeals to Congress spoke the same language:
we must have these overland means of communication and trans-
portation facilities not only for social and economic intercourse,
but also for defensive purposes. We are now a distant colony,
and in case of a war with a foreign country we might be invaded
without being able to receive any aid from the general government.
Without such means of communication we cannot remain in the
Union, for no government can legislate satisfactorily for a distant
people.4"
The central government was not heedless of the demands of
California and of the West in general. The question of overland
communication with the Pacific coast was discussed in Congress
for about a decade and a half. Bills for one transcontinental rail-
road, bills for two roads, and bills for three railroads were intro-
duced in both houses."6 Special committees were appointed, but
there was intermittent war and peace within the committees. In
1853, five exploring and surveying expeditions were sent out to
investigate from an engineering point of view, whether transcon-
tinental railroads were possible, and to find out the most economical
and expedient route. The reports of the several exploring expedi-
tions established the fact that a transcontinental railroad was prac-
ticable from an engineering and an economic point of view over
several routes.
The next question was: how and where should this great road be
"Cal., Statutes, 1850, 465; 1852, 276; 1853, 315; Picayune, November
28, 1851; Alta, November 30, 1851; Cal., Assembly Jour., 1852, 610; Alta,
October 4, 5, 1853; Cal., Sen. Jour., 1853, App. Doc. 72; Davis, Political
Conventions in California, 31, 35, 40, 43.
4"Cong. Globe, 30 Cong., 2 Sess., 473-474; Cong. Globe, 31 Cong., 2 Sess.,
58; Cong. Globe, 32 Cong., 1 Sess., 2466-2467; 33 Corg., 1 Sess., 28-29,
et passim, H. Rep. 274, 34 Cong., 1 Sess. (870).103
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Periodical.
Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 30, July 1926 - April, 1927, periodical, 1927; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth117142/m1/117/: accessed April 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.