The 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln,
signed a document called the Pacific Railway Act that created
Union Pacific Railroad in 1862.
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To connect the United States by rail, the Central Pacific Railroad built
east from California and the Union Pacific Railroad built west from the
Iowa/Nebraska border. On May 10, 1869, they met at Promontory Summit
in Utah, and the whole country celebrated.
2
Locomotives have changed a lot over time — from steam to diesel.
But they still do the same job — pull the train!
3
Union Pacific trains travel all over the
West from the mountains
to the sea — more than 32,000 miles.
4
Planet Earth loves trains because they are the greenest way to travel.
Modern locomotives can carry one ton of freight about 450 miles
on just one gallon of diesel fuel.
5
Trains are the safest way to move things over land.
6
Did you know that trains carry almost
everything like food, clothes, cars, TVs
and teddy bears?
7
Many of our trains run
at more than 70 mph.
That’s faster than most
animals. However, that’s
not as fast as the
Peregrine falcon that
can reach speeds of
more than 200 mph.
8
Trains are like big polar bears. They are super cool, but keep your
distance because they are dangerous up close.
9
Beware when crossing train tracks! If the lights are flashing:
stop, and wait for the train to pass and the gates to go back up.
Never try to beat a train.
10
When I grow up,
I want to be
a railroader.
I could build
bridges and design
computer software,
or I could be
an engineer and
operate the train.
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