https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-resources/spotlight-primary-source/official-photograph-golden-spike-ceremony-1869

May 10, 1869 connected the US of A from the east to the west truly connecting the nation with an engineering marvel. The route met that at day at Promontory Point in Utah. The Central Pacific and Union Pacific were the connecting railroads. That event brought our nation together. Too bad we have such poor politicians leading this country today who are dividing us. We are weaker for that as a nation. In the 1870’s rail travel across the US would average 18 to 22 MPH.

In 1905 traveling the southern route on the Santa Fe Rail Road Death Valley Scotty crossed from Los Angeles to Chicago in 44 hours and 54 minutes. That time was not beaten until 1936. After cresting Cajon Pass out of San Bernardino the train was clocked at one point going 95 MPH.

My own story. In my teenage years I spent most of the summers in that part of California. I met one old timer who introduced me to two of his friends. They had been firemen on the Cajon Pass section of railroad that the Scott Special traveled. I learned that firemen on the trains in that area were very specialized jobs. The tracks do not go up the pass at an exactly measured angle but there are spots that go up steeply then level or go slightly down. A fireman must learn all these spots and know them or the engine will lose speed and/or power as the water level does not remain even all the way over that route. If the road is going up and then goes down slightly the water in the boiler moves back to front in the boiler and vice versa. That can cause an engine to blow up. The old men told about one that had blown up due to a novice firemen who hadn’t learned his jobs well yet or was not paying attention. Those two old guys never got to ride very far on the trains. They told of going from San Bernardino to Victorville where they would fire a train back to San Bernardino. I guess they went along as experts while there must have been another fireman who came from Los Angeles to San Bernardino and then turned the firing over to them before continuing from Victorville. Thinking about that now they must have been like harbor pilots for ships. I regret now not listening better and perhaps writing more of their stories down but that was around 70 years ago and they were retired then so those stories are now only remembrances. The steam driven trains were wonderful to hear and watch. Diesels not so much. I remember standing under the Union Pacific tracks over the Rio Hondo and the engineer releasing steam and it drifting down on my brother and me.