Railroads
INTRODUCTION
Our modern day presents a variety of methods to travel from one place to another. Whether by car, plane, or boat, the selections available for the average consumer are there for people to move freely across the country or the globe. This is because transportation has always been an essential part of human development, whether it was for travel, labor, or trade. While sea trade dominated much of history, trade on land became a dominant player thanks to the invention of the train. These trains were pivotal in histories like that of the British Empire, and with that, the importance of railroads cannot be overstated.
While it is no surprise that a train needs railroads to move, the question remains why railroads needed to be connected globally. Countries like India, Russia, and England are perfect examples of nations who embraced a nationwide rail network at some point of their history, whether by choice or by force. With that in mind, there needs to be a historical understanding into why such a practice needed to be implemented, or why some rejected it. To understand this, let’s take a look at the activity below.
ACTIVITY
Let’s start by watching this video by John Green:
Now let’s take a look at a series of different railroads across the globe
Now that we have gone through this activity, let’s answer the following questions in the comment section:
1) Do you consider the creation and expansion of railroads as a landmark in human history? Why?
2) From what you saw in the maps, what is something that stood out to you?
3) What do these maps of railway systems tell us about world history?
