HIST 450 Lecture Notes - Southern Pacific Transportation Company, Collis Potter Huntington, History Of California
Document Summary
1. industrial growth and technological development, cheap labor due to european immigration: huge wealth (for upper class) and rampant corruption! In california, ultimate symbol of this- the southern pacific railroad(the octopus) The big four: elnd stanford president, collis huntington (vice president, charles crocker construction supervisor, mark hopkins treasurer. The terrible 1870"s: railroad finishes ahead of schedule in 1869, massive layoffs of chinese, goods from east coast flooded california, recession in california, us recession 1873. Blame the heathen chinese, the chinese must go! Spite towns created: stockton no pay, so lathrop founded, goshen no pay so visalia founded. Reward towns created: modesto made a modest contribution, lobbying dems and repubs, bribing democrats and republicans (local, state, federal levels) Land grant abuse: 1870s land loaned to farmers, eventually ill buy land from railroad. B. available for 2. 50 an acre and upwards. 1878 start selling land for 17-40 an acre: farmers legally evicted from land, refused to leave.