How many miles of railroad did the North (U.S.) and South (U.S.) have during certain points in history?

Question

I remember seeing the exact figures in one of my history textbooks a long time ago. It gave certain points in history, ex. 1840, 1860, 1880, 1920, etc. and it would say how many miles of railroad each region (north or south) had.

Could someone tell me what the numbers were, or where i could find this information?

Answer 1

I remembered this too, and I have the books on the shelf. James McPherson's "Ordeal by Fire" (1982) is the book you may be thinking about. Page 7 has a great illustration of railroads in 1850 and 1860 for North and South.
[ I'll try to scan and send to you by e-mail if allowable. ]

If you just want numbers -
1840 = 3328 miles of railroads in the US
1850 = 9000 miles " " " " "
1860 = 31,000 " - the largest in the world at that time

On page 318 of McPherson's Battle Cry of Freedom" (1988),
he notes that the North had more than twice the density of railroad track per square mile as the Confederacy.

{Searching for these numbers on the internet has been a bit frustrating - unusual these days - maybe someone else will do better with search engines}

Answer 2

That's a great question and an important one. I remember seeing those numbers in a textbook years ago as well.

As you might imagine, the north had a huge advantage in rail lines, which enabled them to move supplies and troops more quickly. The South, because it was still a heavily agricultural society, had fewer rail lines. One of the strategies the North employed was to rip up rail lines in the south as a way of crippling their ability to move supplies and soldiers more quickly. That strategy worked perfectly, even if their generals were incompetent on the battlefield.

You'll find some great stats on this at various Civil War Web sites. A simple Google search should produce the information. Let us know - it would be great to have those exact numbers.

Answer 3

Spreedog's answer is a good answer. I can add to what he told you by quoting: "Created by the U.S. War Department in 1862 to provide supply lines for the Union armies, the U.S. Military railroads improved captured Southern rail lines and built new ones, becoming the world's largest railroad in 1865 - with 2,105 miles of track, 419 locomotives, and 6,330 cars."