Challenges and Progress: Railroads and Industry

Transcontinental- extending or going across a continent

Enormous- very large

Streetcar- wheeled vehicle that moves along rails in city streets and is used to carry passengers within the city

Switchboard- a structure used to connect telephone calls manually

Contribute- to be one among several causes of an event or development

Rapid expansion of Texas Railways in the late 1800s increased settlement and promoted the growth of industry

Some cities, such as San Antonio, began improving roadway systems by paving roads and introducing streetcars

Several cities established telephone service in the late 1800s. As the years passed, telephone connections continued to expand across the state.

In the late 1800s, new industries, such as meatpacking and cottonseed oil processing, began developing in Texas.

Railroads helped the expansion of the state's lumbering and mining industries.