Transportation & Economics
1. What nationwide system did the Transcontinental Railroad create that helped unite the country?
First nationwide transportation system / national rail network/ Transcontinental Railroad
1. Define a "push" factor in migration.
Push forces are conditions in homeland that drive people to leave.
1. About how many Chinese workers were hired by the Central Pacific at peak construction? (give the approximate range)
~15,000–20,000 Chinese workers; made up roughly 80% of Central Pacific workforce.
1. In what year was the Transcontinental Railroad completed (May ___, ____)?
May 10, 1869.
1. What is a thesis statement? (short definition appropriate for a mini-essay)
A thesis is a clear, arguable claim that answers the prompt and previews reasons.
2. How much did the government pay per mile on flat land to railroad companies in 1862?
16,000 per mile on flat land.
2. Give two push factors that led Chinese to leave China in the mid‑19th century.
Opium Wars consequences (Treaty of Nanjing debts/taxes), Taiping Rebellion, poverty, lack of opportunity.
2. Compare typical pay/benefits for white workers versus Chinese workers on the railroad.
White workers: about 3535/month plus food/lodging; Chinese: 26–3526–35/month with no food/lodging.
2. Which president’s portrait is repeatedly shown on slides about the “Sweet Deal” and the railroad legislation?
Abraham Lincoln.
2. According to the slides, what are two kinds of primary sources students will analyze to form a claim about Chinese migration?
Primary sources include treaties (e.g., Treaty of Nanjing), photographs, passenger/steamship records, wage/contract data.
3. Name two economic changes the railroad enabled (think national markets/communication).
Faster coast‑to‑coast travel (months → about one week), national market for goods, telegraph news both coasts/ Easier to transport goods
3. Give three pull factors in the United States that attracted Chinese immigrants.
Gold Rush (“Gold Mountain”), jobs (railroad/mining), safety/stability, family connections.
3. List two dangers or causes of death Chinese workers faced while building the railroad
Landslides, tunnel cave-ins, dynamite accidents, blizzards.
3. Who is the historian mentioned who studied the hidden presence of Chinese workers in Promontory photos?
Dr. Gordon H. Chang (Stanford).
3. Identify one weakness in the sample thesis that said “Many factors, some good and some bad, contributed…” and explain how to strengthen it.
4. Which two companies built the Transcontinental Railroad and where did each start?
Union Pacific (from Nebraska/Omaha east→west) and Central Pacific (from Sacramento/California west→east)
4. Explain the "credit-ticket system" and how it functioned as a migration mechanism.
Credit‑ticket: companies paid passage; migrant repaid debt through labor over years.
4. Describe one way Chinese workers organized to support each other in the U.S. (name the type of society).
Huiguans (Chinese mutual‑aid societies; Six Companies).
4. Name the two railroad lines that met at Promontory Summit.
Union Pacific and Central Pacific.
4. Using the provided slides, list three specific pieces of evidence you could use to support the claim that Chinese immigrants “helped transform and strengthen America.”
Evidence examples: workforce numbers (15,000–20,000 and 80% of Central Pacific), cost differentials and danger in Sierra Nevada, economic impact (faster coast‑to‑coast trade and national markets), and presence of huiguans indicating organized immigrant communities.
5. Explain why the Sierra Nevada section cost more per mile to build and list one engineering obstacle workers faced there.
Mountains increased cost ($48,000 per mile); obstacles: granite, 15 tunnels, snow/blizzards.
5. Using the Treaty of Nanjing excerpt described in the documents, identify one way the treaty acted as a push factor for Chinese emigration.
Treaty of Nanjing imposed large indemnities and economic hardship; text shows heavy payments.
5. Explain why the famous May 10, 1869 photograph at Promontory Summit has been criticized regarding Chinese labor representation.
Chinese often absent or blurred in photos due to long exposures and exclusion from staged group portraits; Dr. Chang identified “hidden in plain sight” figures.
5. Give one statistic from the slides about Chinese population in the U.S. by 1870 and one location where most lived.
By 1870 ~63,000 Chinese in U.S.; ~77% in California (San Francisco Chinatown).
5. Formulate a concise thesis (1–2 sentences) answering: To what extent did 19th‑century Chinese immigrants help transform and strengthen America? Base this thesis on the document collection above.