USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -The Central Pacific began laying track eastward from Sacramento, California, in 1863, and the Union Pacific started westward from Omaha, Nebraska, two years later. To meet its manpower needs, the Central Pacific hired thousands of Chinese labourers, including many recruited from farms in Canton.

Detailed explanation-2: -Most of the early workers were Irish immigrants. Railroad work was hard, and management was chaotic, leading to a high attrition rate. The Central Pacific management puzzled over how it could attract and retain a work force up to the enormous task.

Detailed explanation-3: -According to the Chinese Railroad Workers Project, Central Pacific started with a crew of 21 Chinese workers in January 1864. Chinese laborers at work on construction for the railroad built across the Sierra Nevada Mountains, circa 1870s.

Detailed explanation-4: -In 1862, the Pacific Railroad Act chartered the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific Railroad Companies, tasking them with building a transcontinental railroad that would link the United States from east to west.