U.S. Railroads Expanded in the Late 19th Century

George Miller Cumming (1854–1927) was a railroad businessman as the tracks moved West

Undated, unsourced photo that Robert G. Athearn included in his book Union Pacific Country (p. 283). It’s a Utah Southern train at the end of its line in Frisco, Utah; this railroad lasted 1871–1881.

I’m looking at the book Union Pacific Country, published in 1971 by Robert G. Athearn. The ninth chapter, “Beyond the Magic Meridian,” mentions a man I’m interested in, George Miller Cumming.

Five years ago, I wrote a book, Ten Past Noon, about Cumming’s son. Now and then, I find a little more information about the family. So, the information I’m sharing here supplements my book. The new information is about George Cumming’s work for the railroads and his thinking about it. If that feels inherently interesting to you, please keep reading.

In 1867, the Union Pacific Railroad stretched from Omaha, Nebraska in the east to Cheyenne, Wyoming in the west.

From the book Union Pacific Country.

In the 1870s, the settler population continued to grow in the eastern parts of Nebraska and Kansas but had not quite yet taken hold in the western parts. (It’s still true today that the population is greater in the east of Nebraska and Kansas.)