Railways

At one point in history, every Iowa town was within five miles of a railway depot. Let's learn about the rise and fall of the railroad.

Grenville Dodge

Iowan, Grenville Dodge, is one of the great railroad engineers in history. President Abraham Lincoln asked him to share his knowledge and expertise on the best route for the Transcontinental Railroad.

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Transcript
A historic, black and white photo of Grenville Dodge.

Question

How can one person make their mark on history?

Mile 0 in Council Bluffs

Mile Zero was the starting point for the westward expansion of the Transcontinental Railroad.

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Transcript
A historic, black and white photo of people shaking hands in front of a crowd at the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad.

Question

Why was Council Bluffs chosen as mile 0?

Caboose

The caboose was the red car at the end of the train and housed the crew. Today, advancements in technology have replaced the caboose with an end-of-train device.

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Transcript
A red caboose of a train.

Question

What happened to the caboose?

Online and Offline

You might think "online" is a word you use when you're on the internet, but did you know that "online" was first used by the railroads for a different reason?

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Transcript
Inside a historic railroad depot showing the station where telegrams were sent and received.

Question

Where did the wording "online" and "offline" come from?

Life in a Rail Town: Becky

Small towns had train depots when the railroad was thriving. These depots were where passengers bought tickets and waited for the train.

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Transcript
A train bulletin showing the incoming and departing train times.

Question

What do you think it was like living in a town with a railway depot when people traveled by train?

Life in a Rail Town: Sherri

When Sherri was a child, the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad had a depot in Eldon, Iowa.  Let's listen to some of her memories from those days.

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Transcript
The outside view of the Rock Island Train Depot in Eldon, Iowa showing a mural of a train.

Question

What do you think it was like living in a town with a railway depot when people traveled by train?

Railroad Passenger Trains

Many Iowans traveled by passenger train in the early 1900s. Let's learn what it was like to travel on a passenger train.

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Transcript
A model of the interior of a passenger train car.

Question

Why were passenger trains important to Iowans during the first half of the 1900s?

4R Act of 1976

In 1976, as rail travel was declining, Congress passed the 4R Act. This act allowed railroad companies to stop maintaining rails not in use. 

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Transcript
Abby Brown in front of a train locomotive with these words on the screen: Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform.

Question

Do you think the 4R Act of 1976 was good or bad for the railroad industry?