Feb 18, 2026 | History, Industrial Revolution, North American Expansion
The 1860s were a pivotal point not only in the development of the railroad system in the United States, but also in the creation of a modern economy from coast to coast. In the wake of the Civil War, “Reconstruction” occupied the time and attention of much of the...
Jul 30, 2025 | History, Industrial Revolution, North American Expansion
The Antebellum Era: A Time of Inferior Materials As the American railroad network was first being laid in the first half of the 19th century, it posed safety risks symptomatic of any new technology. U.S. President Franklin Pierce’s personal tragedy on January 6, 1853,...
Jul 18, 2024 | Benefits & Use, History, Industrial Revolution
At the turn of the 20th century, innovations in railroad technology spurred the development of new kinds of railroad networks centered around urban areas. These short-line railroads continued to depend on wooden crossties treated and preserved with creosote. And while...
May 29, 2024 | Benefits & Use, History, Industrial Revolution, North American Expansion
At the start of the 19th century, there was no Texas as we know it today. Rather, west of Louisiana—the French colony-turned-state at the conclusion of the War of 1812—was a dry and rugged patchwork of native American and Mexican-held lands. After two rounds of war...
Feb 19, 2024 | Benefits & Use, History, Industrial Revolution
Crosstie wood preservation methods have been vital to the development of railway transportation, infrastructure, and supply chains around the world. This timeline illustrates the role that coal-tar creosote and other wood preservatives have played in economic...
Mar 29, 2023 | Benefits & Use, History, Industrial Revolution
Every good “ghost story” tells the life story of the person whose soul is stuck between this life and the after-life. The audience learns his or her trials and tribulations, and usually what “unresolved issues” are keeping the spirit circling its childhood home. The...
