By the 1890s, the US was becoming an urban nation, and the railroads supplied cities and towns with food, fuel,building materials, and access to markets. The simple presense of railroads could bring a city to economic prosperity.
The railroad was able to aid others in communication, transportation, and products. An example is mail. People used trains to transport mail in order to communicate with others. Traveling was also cheaper and safer now with railroads since it was able to get people where they needed to be much more quickly. And finally products, manufacturers could send supplies to other places in a short amount of time much more easily.
