William G. Thomas

This project explores the social consequences of railroad growth in mid-nineteenth-century America. The fundamental concern of this work is an examination and representation of the national development of the railroad network across space and over time and its multivalent effects on American communities. The central humanities question in this study is understanding the complex social consequences of railroad development across the nineteenth century, through the documentation, representation, and visualization of how Americans experienced these transformative modern developments. The significant outcome of the project is the largest historical database of railroad and social change available over the web for wide access and use in research and teaching.