Railroad Development

The Federal Government gave land and made loans to the railroad companies. Why was the government so eager to promote the growth of railroads?

The Federal Government was extremely eager to promote the growth of railroads and to give out loans for them for several reasons. First, the railroads gave a lot more freedom to let settlers expand West. People gobbled up the fertile land for farming. With the railroads, it was much easier to trade goods from the farms to the more modern city in the North. Also, when immigrants began flooding into the states, mainly the Chinese, this gave jobs so the railroads could get built for little pay, helping the federal government with the cost of building it. With thousands of people flooding to the west, mainly using the railroads, it was only logical for the government to want to support the expanding railroads.