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Difficulty: EasyWestward Expansion: Economic and Social Development

"An Act to aid in the construction of a railroad and telegraph line from the Missouri River to the Pacific Ocean...

Be it enacted... That the right of way through the public lands be, and the same is hereby, granted to said company for the construction of said railroad and telegraph line... [and] there be, and is hereby, granted to the said company, for the purpose of aiding in the construction of said railroad... every alternate section of public land, designated by odd numbers, to the amount of five alternate sections per mile on each side of said railroad..."
— Pacific Railway Act, 1862

Which of the following developments was most directly facilitated by the federal actions described in the excerpt?

  1. A
    The complete adoption of a strict laissez-faire economic policy that ended all government aid to private businesses.
  2. B
    The creation of federal reservations designed to preserve traditional Native American communal land rights.
  3. The expansion of transcontinental transportation networks that integrated western and eastern markets.Answer
  4. D
    The immediate success of Progressive Era urban reformers in outlawing corporate monopolies.

Answer

The expansion of transcontinental transportation networks that integrated western and eastern markets.
The correct option is correct because the Pacific Railway Act of 1862 provided massive federal land grants and subsidies to railroad companies. This federal support directly facilitated the construction of the transcontinental railroad, which connected the West to the East and integrated the region into the national economy.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the primary source excerpt to identify the federal action described.
The excerpt details the Pacific Railway Act of 1862, which granted public land and right-of-way concessions to aid private corporations in constructing a transcontinental railroad.
Establishing the nature of the government intervention is key to understanding its direct historical consequences.
2
Assess how this federal policy physically transformed the American economy and geography during the late nineteenth century.
The subsidies accelerated the completion of the transcontinental railroads, physically connecting remote western resource areas to eastern industrial centers.
This step directly links the legislative action of the subsidies to the development of integrated national trade networks.
3
Evaluate the choices to select the consequence that matches the impact of transcontinental railroad construction.
The expansion and integration of eastern and western markets is the direct consequence of the transcontinental rail lines facilitated by these land grants.
This ensures the selected answer aligns with the historical outcomes of Period 6 westward expansion.

Key Concept

Federal Subsidies and Economic Integration
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Topics

Westward Expansion: Economic and Social Development

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