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Library of Congress1951

Tekhnicheskiĭ proekt zheleznodorozhnoĭ linii Chum-Salekhard-Igarka. Tom IV. Prodol'nyĭ inzhenerno-geologicheskiĭ profil'. Uchastok stant︠s︡ii︠a︡ Labytnangi - stant︠s︡ii︠a︡ Nadym. 1-i︠a︡ chast'

This item is from a collection of materials related to the Salekhard-Igarka Railway, an unfinished Soviet railroad sometimes called the "Dead Road." This railroad was intended to unite European Russia with the northern regions of Siberia and to facilitate the export of minerals from the industrial city of Noril'sk. Construction began in 1949 but was abandoned in 1953 after Stalin's death. Stalin had ordered the construction of the railroad without heeding the advice of specialists, who knew that a railroad built on permafrost would be difficult to maintain. Stalin considered the railroad strategically necessary to facilitate the defense of Russia's northern coast; however, actual demand for the railway was low. Construction was divided into two projects, number 501 and number 503, and was carried out by prisoners of the infamous gulag system. According to eyewitness accounts, conditions in the camps of these projects and in Yermakovo, the central settlement of construction project 503, were better than in most parts of the gulag system. This collection consists of photographs, documents, maps, letters, and memoirs housed in the Igarka Museum of Permafrost. Photographs depict daily life in Yermakovo, a settlement near Igarka, abandoned buildings and railroad equipment, and musicians and actors of the projects' cultural and educational divisions. Many of the photographs were taken by Walter Ruge (1915-2011) and depict his wife Irina Andreevna Alferova. Ruge completed a ten-year sentence as a political prisoner in 1951 before he was released to live as an exile in Yermakovo, where he met Alferova, a fellow exile. The collection's documents and maps provide information about the planning and construction of the railroad and the administration of the camps, while the memoirs and letters describe the experiences of prisoners, exiles, and civilian residents of Yermakovo and the camps. The collection was digitized in the early 2000s for the Meeting of Frontiers digital library project. World Digital Library.

siberia↗

Library of Congress1949

Kombinirovannai︠a︡ s"emka Zheldorproekta i SPIĖ Arktikproekta

This item is from a collection of materials related to the Salekhard-Igarka Railway, an unfinished Soviet railroad sometimes called the "Dead Road." This railroad was intended to unite European Russia with the northern regions of Siberia and to facilitate the export of minerals from the industrial city of Noril'sk. Construction began in 1949 but was abandoned in 1953 after Stalin's death. Stalin had ordered the construction of the railroad without heeding the advice of specialists, who knew that a railroad built on permafrost would be difficult to maintain. Stalin considered the railroad strategically necessary to facilitate the defense of Russia's northern coast; however, actual demand for the railway was low. Construction was divided into two projects, number 501 and number 503, and was carried out by prisoners of the infamous gulag system. According to eyewitness accounts, conditions in the camps of these projects and in Yermakovo, the central settlement of construction project 503, were better than in most parts of the gulag system. This collection consists of photographs, documents, maps, letters, and memoirs housed in the Igarka Museum of Permafrost. Photographs depict daily life in Yermakovo, a settlement near Igarka, abandoned buildings and railroad equipment, and musicians and actors of the projects' cultural and educational divisions. Many of the photographs were taken by Walter Ruge (1915-2011) and depict his wife Irina Andreevna Alferova. Ruge completed a ten-year sentence as a political prisoner in 1951 before he was released to live as an exile in Yermakovo, where he met Alferova, a fellow exile. The collection's documents and maps provide information about the planning and construction of the railroad and the administration of the camps, while the memoirs and letters describe the experiences of prisoners, exiles, and civilian residents of Yermakovo and the camps. The collection was digitized in the early 2000s for the Meeting of Frontiers digital library project. World Digital Library.

krasnoyarsk krai↗

Library of Congress1951

Tekhnicheskiĭ proekt zheleznodorozhnoĭ linii Chum-Salekhard-Igarka. Tom IV. Prodol'nyĭ inzhenerno-geologicheskiĭ profil'. Uchastok stant︠s︡ii︠a︡ Labytnangi - stant︠s︡ii︠a︡ Nadym. 2-i︠a︡ chast'

This item is from a collection of materials related to the Salekhard-Igarka Railway, an unfinished Soviet railroad sometimes called the "Dead Road." This railroad was intended to unite European Russia with the northern regions of Siberia and to facilitate the export of minerals from the industrial city of Noril'sk. Construction began in 1949 but was abandoned in 1953 after Stalin's death. Stalin had ordered the construction of the railroad without heeding the advice of specialists, who knew that a railroad built on permafrost would be difficult to maintain. Stalin considered the railroad strategically necessary to facilitate the defense of Russia's northern coast; however, actual demand for the railway was low. Construction was divided into two projects, number 501 and number 503, and was carried out by prisoners of the infamous gulag system. According to eyewitness accounts, conditions in the camps of these projects and in Yermakovo, the central settlement of construction project 503, were better than in most parts of the gulag system. This collection consists of photographs, documents, maps, letters, and memoirs housed in the Igarka Museum of Permafrost. Photographs depict daily life in Yermakovo, a settlement near Igarka, abandoned buildings and railroad equipment, and musicians and actors of the projects' cultural and educational divisions. Many of the photographs were taken by Walter Ruge (1915-2011) and depict his wife Irina Andreevna Alferova. Ruge completed a ten-year sentence as a political prisoner in 1951 before he was released to live as an exile in Yermakovo, where he met Alferova, a fellow exile. The collection's documents and maps provide information about the planning and construction of the railroad and the administration of the camps, while the memoirs and letters describe the experiences of prisoners, exiles, and civilian residents of Yermakovo and the camps. The collection was digitized in the early 2000s for the Meeting of Frontiers digital library project. World Digital Library.

soils↗

Library of Congress1925

Railroad Map of Trinidad.

This map, produced by the Transportation Department of the United States Department of Commerce in 1925, shows the railroad network of Trinidad. The main rail line in Trinidad was the Trinidad Government Railway, which originally was built in 1876 to connect the major city of Port of Spain with Arima. It later was extended to other inland towns. In addition to railroad lines and tramways, the map shows towns and counties and county boundaries. Originally claimed for Spain by Christopher Columbus in 1498, Trinidad was seized by Britain in 1797. With its much smaller sister island of Tobago, it became a single British colony in 1889. In the 19th century, the economy was dominated by agriculture, chiefly the production of sugarcane and cacao. Oil was discovered in 1857 and the petroleum industry developed from the 1860s onward. The colony of Trinidad and Tobago achieved independence in 1962.

colonies↗

Library of Congress1900

Karmannyĭ Atlas. Sploshnoĭ parovoĭ put' cherez Azii︠u︡ k velikomu okeanu. Velikai︠a︡ Sibirskai︠a︡ zheleznai︠a︡ doroga. Amurskoe parokhodstvo. Ussuriĭskai︠a︡ zheleznai︠a︡ doroga

Presented here is a pocket atlas from 1900 of the steam transportation network of Siberia, including the Trans-Siberian Railroad, the Ussuri Railroad, and the Amur River steamship lines. The publication reflects Russian national pride in the recent establishment of transit links to the Pacific Ocean, even before all sections of the Trans-Siberian Railroad were complete. The atlas contains 27 maps and 14 photographs. The first map shows the global network of rail and steamship connections. It is followed by a general map of Asiatic Russia (Siberia) and a map of the Trans-Siberian Railroad as far as Irkutsk (the route to Vladivostok was unfinished as of 1900, especially the arduous mountain route along the southern tip of Lake Baikal). Other maps show the southern shores of Lake Baikal; the Trans-Baikal Railroad; the Amur steamship routes and the Ussuri Railroad; the Kwantung region (the southern part of Liaodong Peninsula in China, a territorial concession occupied by Russia in 1898); with Dalian and Port Arthur and their environs. Separate maps show some of the largest Siberian and Russian Far Eastern cities and their environs, including Tomsk, Irkutsk, Krasnoyarsk, Chita, Blagoveshchensk, and Vladivostok. Interspersed with the maps are photographs of Siberian scenes, depicting railroad stations, steamship wharves, and vistas of places shown on the accompanying maps. World Digital Library.

vladivostok↗

Library of Congress1871

Birds eye view of the city of Atlanta, the capitol of Georgia 1871

"This panoramic map shows Atlanta, Georgia, as it appeared in 1871. The town sprang up at the confluence of the Chattahoochee River and Peachtree Creek; it later became a railroad settlement, located at the intersection of the Western & Atlantic Railroad and the Georgia Railroad. The capital of Georgia was moved to Atlanta in 1868. The importance of the railroad to the area is evident in this map, which shows a view looking northeast over the city. The railroad depot (Union Depot) is visible near the center of the image, with several trains traversing the rail lines running through the city. Streets, homes, and industrial buildings sprawl out from the depot and into the surrounding hills. An index at the bottom of the map indicates points of interest, including the state house, city hall, the Governor's mansion, schools and colleges, houses of worship, U.S. barracks, the gas works, freight offices, and various industrial facilities (foundries, mills, an iron works, and a brewery). The panoramic map was a cartographic form popularly used to depict U.S. and Canadian cities and towns in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Also known as bird's-eye views or perspective maps, these maps are representations of cities portrayed as if viewed from above at an oblique angle. Not generally drawn to scale, they show street patterns, individual buildings, and major landscape features in perspective. This map is by Albert Ruger (1829-99), the first American to achieve success as a panoramic artist. Born in Prussia, Ruger immigrated to the United States and worked initially as a mason. While serving with the Ohio Volunteers during the Civil War, he drew views of Union campsites. After the war, Ruger settled in Battle Creek, Michigan, where he began his panoramic mapping career by sketching Michigan cities. In the late 1860s, Ruger formed a partnership with J.J. Stoner of Madison, Wisconsin, and together they published numerous city panoramas." World Digital Library.

georgia↗

Library of Congress1918

[Middle East]

"This map of western Asia produced by the American Geographical Society (AGS) of New York dates from the period immediately after World War I. A similar map in the collection of the American Geographical Society Library at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee is thought to have been made by the AGS for the use of the American delegation to the peace negotiations in Versailles in 1918-19. The map shows Turkey, the Arabian Peninsula, Persia (present-day Iran), and Afghanistan. Iraq is still shown as part of Turkey (the Ottoman Empire). The League of Nations mandates for Syria, Iraq, and Palestine, adopted at the peace conference, are not yet shown. Qatar is indicated as El Katr; Doha and Wakrah are shown as Dohah and Wakra. India (i.e., British India) includes present-day Pakistan. The Soviet Union, with its constituent republics in Central Asia (Russian Turkistan), has not yet been formed. The map has three scales: miles, kilometers, and Russian versts." World Digital Library.

railroads↗

Library of Congress1891

The route of the Alaska excursion steamers

"In the years after the Alaska Purchase in 1867, Americans had only a dim appreciation of the value and splendors of their new northern territory. This attitude changed slowly, and it was not fully overcome until the Klondike Gold Rush of 1898 radically altered perceptions of the region's value. Even earlier, however, certain developments started to shift American views of Alaska. In particular, John Muir's accounts of his travels to Alaska, beginning in the 1870s, gave Americans an initial feeling for the rare majesty of the Alaskan wilderness. Aside from Muir's paeans to nature, the area was ripe for large-scale tourism because of the recent completion of several transcontinental railroads and improving port infrastructure for passenger ship service. From the 1880s onwards, seasonal cruises began to tap a growing market for visitors eager to see the rugged Pacific coast between Seattle or Vancouver and Alaska. In time, this stretch of sea and islands became known as the "Inside Passage." The route wound through the spectacular fjords of the region and became world-famous for wildlife and scenery. Newsworthy events, such as the Harriman Alaskan Expedition of 1899 financed by railroad magnate E.H. Harriman, further highlighted the region and its potential for tourism. This map, published in 1891, shows the excursion steamship routes from Seattle, which took the inland waterway east of Vancouver Island and on to Alaska, as well as the interconnecting railroad routes from Chicago on the Great Northern and Northern Pacific Lines." World Digital Library.

alaska↗

Library of Congress1897

Elkins, Randolph County, W.Va. 1897

"This panoramic map shows Elkins, West Virginia, as it appeared in 1897. The city was developed as a railroad hub in the 1880s by two entrepreneurs and politicians: Henry Gassaway Davis (1823-1916) and Stephen Benton Elkins (1841-1911), with the city named after the latter. Both men served terms representing West Virginia in the U.S. Senate. The map shows the city of Elkins along the Tygart's Valley River, with two bridges crossing the river--one for rail (adjacent to Railroad Avenue) and one for pedestrians and other transport (Davis Avenue). A train is seen on the far side of town, traveling on the West Virginia Central Railroad. The railroad enabled the success of industry involving the extraction of natural resources such as coal and timber. The index at the bottom of the map indicates points of interest, including the railroad hub, major industrial facilities, shops, schools, churches (Presbyterian, Baptist, Catholic, Methodist, Baptist Colored, and United Brethren), and the opera house. The panoramic map was a cartographic form in popular use to depict U.S. and Canadian cities and towns in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Also known as bird's-eye views or perspective maps, these works are representations of cities portrayed as if viewed from above at an oblique angle. Not generally drawn to scale, they show street patterns, individual buildings, and major landscape features in perspective. This map is by Thaddeus Mortimer Fowler (1842-1922), one of the most prolific makers of panoramic maps. Fowler was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, and fought and was wounded in the American Civil War. After working for an uncle who was a photographer, in 1870 he established his own panoramic map firm. Over the course of a long career, Fowler made panoramic maps of cities in 21 states and parts of Canada." World Digital Library.

united states↗

Library of Congress1920

Skhematicheskai︠a︡ karta Ussuriĭskoĭ, Mandzhurskoĭ i Koreĭskoĭ zheleznykh dorog

This map shows the major railroads located in the Russian Far East, Manchuria (China), and Korea in the early 20th century: the Ussuri Railroad, the Manchurian Railroad, and the Korean Railroad. The establishment of railroads was a major vehicle of imperial expansion and control in the Far East in this era, particularly for Russia and Japan. The map utilizes a variety of lines and colors to explain various phases of railroad construction: a double-black line for the completion of two tracks, a single black line for completion of one track, a red line for an established but only partially constructed railroad, and a dashed black line for a proposed (but still unbuilt) railroad. Several well-known Russian, Chinese, and Korean cities are shown on the map. These include Blagoveshchensk, Khabarovsk, and Vladivostok in Russia; Harbin, Mukden (present-day Shenyang), and Port Arthur (Lüshun) in China (Manchuria); and P'yongyang and Seoul in Korea. Black triangles signify the presence of Japanese troops in parts of northeastern China and Korea, reflecting the extensive military occupation by Japan following its victory in the Russo-Japanese War in 1904-5. In the 19th century, as the Qing Dynasty of imperial China weakened, both Russia and Japan sought to take advantage of China's waning power by expanding into areas of northeastern China and neighboring Korea. Russia forced China to cede territories north and east of the Amur and Ussuri Rivers in the Treaty of Aigun of 1858 and in the Convention of Peking of 1860 and increased its influence in Manchuria from its base of operations in Harbin. Japan moved aggressively into China and Korea after victories in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-95 and in the Russo-Japanese War. As Japan became ascendant in the region after 1905, it targeted Russian railroad interests and reengineered local rail networks to serve its own interests. This map was compiled from notes of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society for use in a book on the Maritime Region of Russia (Primorskiy Kray, near Vladivostok). The map shows a scale at the bottom that utilizes the verst, a tsarist-era unit of distance equal to 1.07 kilometers. World Digital Library.

republic of korea↗

Library of Congress1865

Map showing the different routes surveyed for the Union Pacific Rail Road between the Missouri River and the Platte Valley,

"President Abraham Lincoln signed the Pacific Railroad Act into law on July 1, 1862. The act gave two companies, the Union Pacific Railroad and the Central Pacific Railroad, responsibility for completing the transcontinental railroad. The Union Pacific was to lay track westward from a point near Omaha, Nebraska, toward Ogden, Utah; the Central Pacific was to build eastward from Sacramento, California. The Union Pacific began construction on December 2, 1863. This map, submitted to Secretary of Interior James Harlan on September 18, 1865, by Lieutenant Colonel J.H. Simpson of the Army Corps of Engineers, shows the different routes between the Missouri River and the Platte Valley in Nebraska surveyed for the Union Pacific. Based on a map submitted by Silas Seymour, consulting engineer to the Union Pacific, the map shows five alternative routes with probable connections to existing railroads. Also shown are relief by hachures, county boundaries, drainage, vegetation, and roads. Nebraska was at this time a territory; it became the 37th state on March 1, 1867. Under the authorizing legislation, the railroad was not to have grades or curves exceeding the maximums on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, the first U.S. railroad to cross the Appalachians. This profile shows the careful attention paid by the engineers to the steepness of the grades on alternative routes considered for the line. The horizontal scale shown is one mile to one inch (1.61 kilometers to 2.54 centimeters), and the vertical scale is 60 feet to one inch (18.28 meters to 2.54 centimeters). The profile accompanied a topographic map showing five different routes between the Missouri River and the Platte Valley in Nebraska, which was part of a report submitted to Secretary of Interior James Harlan by Lieutenant Colonel J.H. Simpson of the Army Corps of Engineers." World Digital Library. Detailed map of Nebraska showing relief by hachures, drainage, vegetation, roads, and railroads.

nebraska↗

Library of Congress1858

Map of the territory of the United States from the Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean; ordered by Jeff'n Davis, Secretary of War to accompany the reports of the explorations for a railroad route

"The United States gained vast territories in the West through the Mexican War of 1846-48 and the 1846 Oregon Treaty with Great Britain. By the early 1850s, government and commercial interests were debating the possibilities of building a transcontinental railroad to the Pacific. The Army Appropriations Act of 1853 provided for the completion of railroad surveys to determine possible routes. This map, issued in 1858 by Secretary of War Jefferson Davis, depicts the United States west of the Mississippi on the eve of the Civil War. California and Texas were at this time the only Western states. Western regions initially became part of the United States as military departments, which only later were organized into territories and, eventually, states. The map uses colors to show the military departments and Indian lands. Brown flags indicate military establishments. In the lower right are listed all of the important surveys and expeditions that contributed to the mapping of the West, from the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804 to a survey of roads between the Sacramento and Columbia Rivers undertaken by two army officers in 1855. The routes of these expeditions are shown on the map. The map was compiled by then-Lieutenant Gouverneur K. Warren of the Army Topographical Engineers and a future Union general in the Civil War. Davis later became president of the Confederacy and a bitter adversary of President Abraham Lincoln under whose leadership, ironically, work on the transcontinental railroad began in 1862." World Digital Library.

united states↗

Library of Congress1911

Property map of the Canal Zone showing property belonging to the United States of America, Panama R. R. Co., and lands claimed by private persons

"This large, detailed, map is from the collection of the Panama Canal Zone Library, which was transferred to the Library of Congress in 1978. This collection contains various maps, plans, and diagrams detailing the history of Panama and the construction of the Panama Canal over the ten-year period of 1904 to 1914. According to a note on the map, the "map shows the land in the Canal Zone that has been set apart for all Governmental purposes in the Canal Zone, to date, and whether the land belongs to the United States of America, the Panama Railroad Company, or to private individuals. It further indicates whether these reservations for Governmental purposes have been made for Canal Works, Fortifications, Lighting, Town sites, Reservoirs, Watersheds, or Miscellaneous purposes ... ." Colored markings on the map further subdivide U.S. lands into those acquired by treaty, by purchase, or from the French. France had initiated work on a canal across the isthmus in 1879, but the project stalled. Panama gained independence from Colombia in 1903 and the United States acquired from Panama the rights to build a canal, as well as bought the assets of the defunct French canal construction company. This map formed part of submissions to the United States House of Representatives Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce by Frank Feuille, head of the Department of Law of the Isthmian Canal Commission, at Ancon in the Canal Zone on December 22, 1911, and January 26, 1912." World Digital Library.

panama↗

Library of Congress1829

Pennsylvania

"This 1829 map of Pennsylvania is the earliest general map of the state to show railroads. Several of the first railroads in the United States were built in Pennsylvania, where they were used to haul coal from mines to rivers and canals. The map also shows roads, canals, and proposed railroads. Counties are distinguished by color, and the main mountain ridges are shown by hachures. The map is by Anthony Finley (circa 1790-1840), an American map publisher based in Philadelphia, at the time the center of cartographic publishing in America. Finley's maps were known for their focus on clarity and for presenting only the most important facts and features. Finley produced numerous individual maps and two atlases, A New American Atlas (1826) and the New General Atlas (1831)." World Digital Library. Shows roads, canals, railroads, and proposed railroads. Counties are distinguished by color. Main mountain ridges are shown by hachures. Earliest general map of the state to show railroads.

united states↗

Library of Congress1859

Map of the United States west of the Mississippi showing the routes to Pike's Peak, overland mail route to California and Pacific rail road surveys. To which are added the new state & territorial boundaires, the principal mail & rail road routes with all the arrangements & corrections made by Congress up to the date of its issue

"D. McGowan and George H. Hildt's 1859 map of the United States west of the Mississippi was based on an official map of 1857 produced by the Pacific railroad surveys. In the 1850s, Americans concluded that they needed to build a transcontinental railroad linking the east and center of the country with the Pacific coast. The U.S. Congress authorized the army topographical service to undertake engineering surveys and general assessments of five possible routes: from Saint Paul, Minnesota; from Council Bluffs, Iowa; from Saint Louis, Missouri; from Memphis, Tennessee; and from Vicksburg, Mississippi. Cities, states, and business groups competed fiercely to be the eastern terminus of the transcontinental railroad. This map offers an excellent example of a promotional map used to encourage settlement and investment in the American West. Published in Saint Louis, it emphasizes potential routes emanating from that city. The focus on Pike's Peak highlights the recent discovery of gold in Colorado. The map is hand-colored, framed in decorative borders, and shows drainage, state boundaries, cities and towns, and transportation and communication networks." World Digital Library. Detailed general map framed in decorative borders showing drainage, state boundaries, cities and towns, and the transportation and communication networks. An excellent example of a promotional map to encourage emigration. [From published bibliography]

west↗

Library of Congress1846

A new map for travelers through the United States of America showing the railroads, canals & stage roads with the distances,

"This 1846 map of the United States by John Calvin Smith is from Smith's The Illustrated Hand-book for Travelers through the United States. Smith published editions of this popular guide, each of which contained a foldout map of the United States, in 1846, 1847, 1849, 1851, and 1856. Framed in decorative borders, the map indicates drainage and state boundaries, shows cities and towns with distances along roads and railroads, and identifies the major Indian tribes living west of the Mississippi River. The inset maps on the right show the increasing density of transportation infrastructure of the northeastern United States, as well as reflect the growing national interest in the Pacific. The top inset map shows the rail and canal routes in upstate New York linking Albany and Buffalo, the railroads between the cities of New York, Boston, and Albany, and the course of the Hudson River from New York to Albany. These were the major components of a network that provided economical rail, road, and water transport from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. Two other maps show the railroad routes from New York to Philadelphia and from Philadelphia to Washington. The fourth map shows Oregon, northern California, Santa Fe, and other parts of the Far West." World Digital Library. A detailed general map of the eastern half of the United States, framed in decorative borders, with most of the details east of the Mississippi River. Indicates drainage, state boundaries and shows many cities and towns with distances along roads and railroads. Indian tribes are indicated west of the Mississippi River. [From published bibliography]

united states↗

Library of Congress1911

Map of the Argentine Railways.

Between 1880 and 1915, the Argentine railroad network expanded from 1,388 miles (2,234 kilometers) to 22,251 miles (35,809 kilometers) in length, making it the longest on the continent of South America and the eighth longest in the world. Railroads played a key role in economic development and national consolidation and made possible Argentina's emergence as a major exporter of wheat, beef, and other products. The most important railroads were owned and built by British companies, which were granted concessions by the Argentine government because of their technical expertise and their ability to raise large sums on the London market to finance the construction. This 1911 map, issued by the Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway Company of Buenos Aires and London, shows the country's main rail lines. Inset maps show the denser networks in the regions of Buenos Aires, Mendoza, and Bahia Blanca. Most of the British-owned lines adopted the broad-gauge, 5 foot 6 inch (1.68 meter) standard, wider than the track used in most other parts of the world, including Europe and North America. Other lines used the narrow gauge of 3 foot 3.27 inches (1 meter wide), or the 4 foot 8.5 inch (1.44 meter) standard gauge.

railroads↗

Library of Congress1899

Argentine Railways, 1899.

Intensive railroad development took place in Argentina between 1880 and 1916, a period of rapid economic growth and national consolidation. The railroads made possible Argentina's emergence as a major exporter of wheat, beef, and other products. The most important railroads were owned and built by British companies, which were granted concessions by the Argentine government because of their technical expertise and their ability to raise large sums on the London market to finance the construction. This 1899 map, issued by the Buenos Ayres and Pacific Railway Company, of London, shows the country's main rail lines. The inset map at the upper left shows the dense network in and around the capital city and main port of Buenos Aires. Most of the British-owned lines adopted the broad-gauge, 5 foot 6 inch (1.68 meter) standard, wider than the track used in most other parts of the world, including Europe and North America. Other lines used the narrow gauge of 3 foot 3.27 inches (1 meter wide), or, as indicated in the note on the map pertaining to the provinces of Entre Rios and Corrientes, the 4 foot 8.5 inch (1.44 meter) standard gauge.

uruguay↗