Question

•What were the benefits and drawbacks of having a railroad run through your city in the 1800s?

Answer 1

Transportation is everything. Before the built the erie canal, Philadelphia was the largest and fastest growing city in america. Ten years after the canal, New York was the largest city.

Before you had railroads, you had to move goods by wagon, or river. Rivers were limited, and wagon were expensive. If a town was bypassed by a railroad, all trade dried up, often the town moved to the railroad.
Indianapolis was a sleepy town of 8,000 in 1848 when the first railroad arrived, grew to 160,000 by 1900. Just about every city had a similar growth.

On the other side of the coin, Arrow Rock Missouri had a population of 1,000 in 1860 because of Missouri River traffic. The rail road never came to Arrow Rock, and it population shrunk to 45.

Answer 2

Welcome to Openstudy.

Answer 3

@Nurali thanks

Answer 4

My Pleasure.