Answer:
The transcontinental railroad shortened travel across the continent from an average five to six months to five or six days
Congress gave 100 million acres of land to the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads
The construction of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads eventually employed 20,000 workers.
Explanation:
The expansion of the American settlement and economic activities demanded the growth of railroads in many regions of the United States of America. The gold rush to California and the communication problem through acquired a more convenient method to reach across the stretch of the nation. Asa Whitney proposed a transcontinental railroad that would connect the nation from east to west but due to factionalism in Congress, it was ignored. Finally, in 1862 by the Pacific Railroad Act, the idea is finalized.
The Middle Atlantic Colonies were called the "breadbasket colonies", because they had rich soil which made them a huge exporter for wheat and grain. They were also the most religious and ethnically diverse colonies. Alongside their big wheat and grain export, they also enjoyed big lumber and shipbuilding industries and had abundant forests which helped them in the textile and iron industry.
