How many Irish immigrants worked on the transcontinental railroad?
How many Irish immigrants worked on the transcontinental railroad? The transcontinental railroad married the East with the West, and it melded a variety of cultures — from the estimated 15,000 Chinese workers to the 10,000 Irishmen.
Why did so many Chinese work on the Transcontinental Railroad?
The Central Pacific Railroad, which was tasked with constructing the western half of the Transcontinental Railroad, began hiring Chinese workers in 1864 after facing a labor shortage that jeopardized the railroad's completion.
What were the differences between Irish and Chinese railroad workers?
Chinese workers were treated unjustly and paid lower because of their race. Chinese workers were paid approximately $24 to $31 a month, while the Irish workers were pad $35 a month. In addition, the Chinese worked longer hours and paid for their lodging, food and tools while Irish and white workers were provided for.
How were the Irish treated during the transcontinental railroad?
Although the 3000 Irish laborers did not suffer the same type of racial injustice while on the railroads, they still were not adequately paid for the dangerous types of work they were doing. They were paid little money to work on a dangerous and mainly unsettled terrain (Harvard).
Why did the Irish work on the transcontinental railroad?
Among those who worked on the railway were thousands of post-Famine Irish emigrants who laboured alongside Chinese workers drafted in to make up for the labour shortages across the continent at the time.
What percentage of transcontinental railroad workers were Chinese?
Altogether, the Central Pacific Railroad hired an estimated 12,000 Chinese workers, some as young as 12. The Chinese workers, at that time the largest industrial workforce in American history, made up 90 percent of the Central Pacific's total labor force.
What was the largest immigrant group who worked on the transcontinental railroad?
The building of the Transcontinental Railroad relied on the labor of thousands of migrant workers, including Chinese, Irish, and Mormons workers. On the western portion, about 90% of the backbreaking work was done by Chinese migrants.
What nationality were most of the immigrants who built the railroads?
Most of them were Chinese workers who were paid less for their labor than their European counterparts. Chinese migrants worked in the Sierra foothills for the Central Pacific Railroad. For years, railroad workers were largely overlooked in memorial events marking the railroad's completion.
Who built the railroads Irish or Chinese?
Teachers should understand that most of the people who worked to build the transcontinental railroad were immigrants from China and Ireland. These immigrants faced discrimination in the U.S., but their labor made this national achievement possible.
How many Irish workers worked on the transcontinental railroad?
Of the 10,000 Irish immigrants who worked on the railroad, many were veterans of the US Civil War and the made up at least half of the workers from the Union Pacific railway company.