The Transcontinental Railroad allowed America to become a world power by...
Binding the East and the West together.
Ending reliance on ships going around Cape Horn in South America.
Revolutionizing mail service.
Allowing for females to travel alone.
Beginning the agricultural boom in California and the West
Promoting the settlement and population growth in the West
The Transcontinental Railroad cost the Native American population and their culture. If the railroad was not built America would be a very different nation from the one we know today.