Assess the Impact of the Development of Communications on the Settlement of the American West

'Assess the impact of the development of communications on the settlement of the West'.

A vital factor in the communicational development of the West was due to the completion of the Trans-Adlantic Railroad, of which was completed in 1869. The railroad created a new leash of exsistance in American, how the once baron, urban land, now to be industrialized and inhabited by all those who seek a new life. The Railroad however spelt disaster for the Native American Indian Tribes, whose lives were to be devastated

by the Railroad's arrival, and pushed to the boundaries of extinction. The railroad provided a cheaper and faster mode of transportation for people and their belongings. No longer would seeking immigrants die through a long ardeous journey that would takes up to months to accomplish, the Trans-Adlantic Railroad was to be their saviour. Never again would the devestation of The Donner Party be felt, this, the most famous tragedy in the history of the westward migration. Almost ninety wagon train emigrants were unable to cross the Sierra Nevada before winter, and almost one-half starved to death. Perhaps because they were ordinary people, farmers, merchants, parents, children; their story captured the imagain

ation of the American people. Yet an invention by Samuel Morse the 'Telegraph' furthermore assisted in the communications development of the West.

Socially the Impact of the railroad had a huge affect. It did not only allow families to reunite after years of seperation, cutting down the travel time from 6months to 7days via rail. Though the most important factor of the railroad was how it motivated people to 'risk it', to seek a new life, in just 7 days was an astounding acknowledgement, and so many did infact flee in their thousands to the American West.

Settlement of the West was a long process, although many fled to the American West, mnay rail towns shortly became ghost towns, deserted, as settlers moved on to find more buisnness, and generally follow where everyone else seemed to be going. Yet many Cow and Railtowns became permanent

, and as such expanded and grew to become large cities, such as San Francisco and Dodge City. The development of the Railroad made these towns easily accessible, with news spreading, and interest

growing, this intised more immigrants to seek new lives in the West. The Railtowns that instaltaneously sprouted up were easily available

for supplies, not only due to the railroad being so close, but the land grants the Railway owners were given to sell to homesteaders, who in turn set up shops, and thus were the pioneers of Western Industrialisation. The Railway owners profited from the people who lived one the land, using the railway at their primary source of transportation of their goods, and materials needed for their new lives. This stability of the Railroad was a definite

factor in Railtowns bringing in permanent

settlers.

Economically the introduction of the Trans-Atlantic railroad was a crucial factor in the economic development and growth of America, not only witihn America, yet even Easternly to Asia, the railroad allowed these markets to become closer together, and thus a pioneering factor why America rapidly became the Worlds