Driving the Last Spike
The Ceremony, May 10,
1869
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Driving the Golden Spike, May 10, 1869 |
After the Union Pacific and Central Pacific engines had moved up toward each other, a call was made for the
people to stand back, in order that all might have a chance to see. Prayer was
offered by Rev. Dr. Todd of Massachusetts. Brief remarks were then made by
General Dodge and Governor Stanford.
Three cheers were given for the Government of the United
States, for the railroad, for the Presidents, for the Laborers, and for those respectively
who furnished the means.
Four spikes were then furnished, two gold and two silver,
by Montana, Idaho, California, and Nevada. They were each about seven inches
long.
Dr. Durant stood on the north side of the tie, and Governor
Stanford on the south side. At a given signal, these gentlemen struck the spikes, and
at the same instant the electric spark was sent through the wires, east and
west.
Dispatch from the Associated Press
Promontory Summit, Utah, May 10,
The
last rail is laid! The last spike is driven! The Pacific Railroad is completed!
The point of junction is 1,086 miles west of the Missouri River, and 690 miles
east of Sacramento.
Leland
Stanford
Central Pacific Railroad
T.
C. Durant
Sidney Dillon
John Duff
Union Pacific Railroad
A number of ladies graced the ceremonies with their presence, and at 1 p. m.
under an almost cloudless sky, and in the presence of about one thousand, one
hundred people, the greatest railroad on earth was completed.
A sumptuous repast was given to all the guests and railroad
officers, and toward evening the trains each moved away and darkness fell upon
the scene of joy and triumph.
Immediately after the ceremonies, the laurel tie was removed
for preservation, and in its place an ordinary one was substituted. Scarcely had
it been put in its place, before a grand advance was made upon it by the
curiosity seekers and relic hunters and divided into numberless mementoes, and
as fast as each tie was demolished and a new one substituted, this too, shared
the same fate.
It is somewhat unfortunate that all the scenes which characterize this place of meeting are passed over by the railroad trains at night, and travelers can not catch even a glimpse.