1. Space
   Gauge
2. Meter
   Furlong

The distance between the tracks of a railroad is known as the gauge. There are traditionally three different gauges of railroad tracks: narrow, standard and broad. Different manufacturers of locomotives often determined the size of the gauge.

1. Utah
   Nevada
2. Montana
   Nebraska

Montana was not a state that the Transcontinental Railroad passed through. With starting points in Omaha and San Francisco, the Transcontinental Railroad met in Utah and was completed in 1869 with the final golden spike.

1. Goldbugs
   Crédit Mobilier
2. Danbury Hatters
   Greenback Party

In the early railroad days, construction of the rails was more profitable than running an actual railroad company. Crédit Mobilier took advantage of this and offered themselves construction contracts on behalf of the Union Pacific railroad.

1. Big Bill Broonzy
   Casey Jones
2. John Henry
   Big John Stud

John Henry is a folklore hero in the annals of railroad construction. Thousands of men worked to construct railroads. John Henry challenged a steam-powered drill to the work of drilling a tunnel. His superhuman effort beat the machine, but it cost him his life as he died of exhaustion.

1. Ballast
   Track Pan
2. Featherbed
   Railhead

A combination of materials was spread out on the ground in order to create drainage and a stable surface for railroad tracks. The material is called ballast. The ingredients of ballast often included gravel, cinder, slag and sand.

1. Tom Thumb
   Argus
2. General
   Big Iron

The first locomotive that ran in the United States was called Tom Thumb. It ran on a short piece of track near Baltimore, MD in 1830. The locomotive was designed to carry a few passengers for a short distance as a demonstration of what a steam locomotive could do.

1. Caboose
   Scullery
2. Cookroom
   Wagon Car

The last train car on a large freight train is known as the caboose. The caboose was originally designed as a shelter for the crew members aboard a train. In pop culture, the word is also used as a slang reference to a person's behind.

1. England
   France
2. China
   Japan

Japan is responsible for developing the first bullet trains. Known as "Shinkansen" in Japan, these trains can travel at speeds over 185 miles per hour. The high speed rail system was developed in time for the 1964 Olympics, which were held in Tokyo.

1. Andrew Johnson
   John Tyler
2. Abraham Lincoln
   James K. Polk

In 1862, the Pacific Railroad Act was signed by Congress under President Abraham Lincoln. This act allowed the government to provide subsidies in funds and land to help construct the Transcontinental Railroad, which was completed in 1869.

1. Wastern Coast Railroad
   Central Pacific Railroad
2. Burlington Northern Railroad
   Sacramento Railroad

The Central Pacific Railroad was tasked with starting tracks in the west and eventually meeting the tracks that had started in Omaha. The tracks finally converged in Utah in 1869, which completed the Transcontinental Railroad.

1. Per year
   By the hour
2. By the day
   By the miles of track completed

The companies building the Transcontinental Railroad were paid by the mile of track laid down. This caused a competition of sorts to create the most miles of track. The companies would constantly set new records with how much track they could put down in a day.

1. Africa
   Italy
2. Russia
   Ireland

A large portion of immigrants who worked on the railroads were Irish, and this was particularly true for the Transcontinental Railroad project. Of the two companies working on this project, the Union Pacific company relied mainly on Irish workers.

1. 689 miles
   1154 miles
2. 1776 miles
   2988 miles

The number of miles that connected the Transcontinental Railroad totaled 1,776 miles that stretched from Sacramento, CA to Omaha, NE. Central Pacific Railroad completed 690 miles and Union Pacific Railroad completed 1,086 miles.

1. 2
   10
2. 19
   6

The world record for laying railroad track is just over 10 miles. This was completed a small army of workers, most of whom were Chinese. It was achieved during a 12-hour day and just a few miles from the meeting of the tracks at Promontory, UT.

1. United States
   England
2. France
   Canada

The locomotive was first created in England by inventor George Stephenson. He employed a steam-powered engine to move along the steel tracks. He created the first locomotive in 1825. It was then introduced and manufactured in other countries, including the United States, by 1830.

1. Patented a train car coupler
   He invented the caboose
2. He drove in the golden spike at Promontory, UT
   He wrote famous railroad songs

Eli Janney was a famous woodworker and whittler who improved the method by which train cars were connected. The early way was a link and pin system. He improved upon this with what is known as a knuckle system.

1. Greenville Dodge
   John Henry
2. Theodore Judah
   Abraham Lincoln

Theodore Judah was a railroad and civil engineer from Connecticut. He was involved in starting the Central Pacific Railroad in Sacramento, CA. He encouraged others to invest in a railroad that would connect the east and west coasts of the U.S.

1. FTD
   TGV
2. FBT
   SBD

France's rail service, the fastest in the world, is called the TGV. The trains can travel at speeds of up to 200 miles per hour! These aerodynamic trains were created to minimize the environmental impact of the system.

1. Unruly train passengers
   A really fast locomotive
2. Lawless towns along the railroads
   Group of train robbers

"Hell on Wheels" refers to the small towns and villages that usually accompanied the railroads as they were being built. These towns were infamous for lawlessness. They were hotbeds for drinking, gambling and prostitution.

1. Sierra Nevada Mountains
   Grand Canyon
2. Gold
   Pacific Ocean

In 1849, the discovery of gold in the hills of California sparked a frenzy of westward migration. This sudden demand for faster transportation served as the catalyst for new railroads that were built to bring people and supplies out west.

1. Four western territories of the U.S.
   Washington, Lincoln, Jefferson, Roosevelt
2. Four original railroad companies
   Central Pacifc Railroad original investors

The "Big Four" refers to the four original investors of the Central Pacific Railroad. They were Leland Stanford, Collis P. Huntington, Mark Hopkins and Charles Crocker, and were all brought together by Theodore Judah.

1. Baltimore and Ohio
   Burlington Northern
2. Boston Central
   New York Central

The New York Central Railroad ran primarily in the Great Lakes area. It connected New York and Boston with areas such as Chicago, Detroit and St. Louis. The track featured a train car named after the famous American, Paul Revere.

1. Car
   Stagecoach
2. Boat
   Airplane

The fastest mode of transportation before the train was the horse-drawn stagecoach, which averaged about seven miles per hour. The car and the airplane were both invented after the train. The train would shorten a months-long cross-country journey into a trip lasting several days.

1. Steam
   Electricity
2. Coal
   Diesel

Most modern train systems, including both above ground and subway systems, run on electric power. Earlier locomotives were steam-powered by burning wood and coal. Many modern train systems carry passengers long distances using diesel-powered engines.

1. Cog-and-rack trains
   Steam powered trains
2. Electric trains
   Freight Trains

Cog-and-rack trains are able to climb steep hills using a toothed wheel that catches on a toothed rail, which pulls it up the slope. These trains are often found in the steep mountains of Europe.

1. Northern Starlight
   Orient Express
2. Rocket
   Empire Builder

George Stephenson, who invented the first steam-powered locomotive, created the Rocket. The Rocket, located England, was known as the first intercity passenger train. It ran between Liverpool and Manchester around 1829.

1. Silver Link
   Mallard
2. Tahoe
   Deltic

The Mallard was an English-built locomotive that reached a speed of 126 miles per hour in 1930. The record has never been matched by another steam-powered locomotive. The train maintained this speed for a couple of minutes.

1. Paris
   New York
2. London
   Rome

London was the first city to build an underground metro railway system. The system was created in 1863 to relieve traffic congestion and is known today as the Underground or Tube system.

1. Slow movement
   Steam power
2. By only using downhill tracks
   Multiple engines

In order for a freight train to pull a heavy load, multiple engines are attached together to act as one. For long freights with hilly routes, up to eight engines may be required to pull the heavy loads.

1. United States
   China
2. Russia
   India

The United States has the longest railway system in the world. There are over 150,000 miles of rail track spanning the nation. About 80 percent of those railways are used by freight lines, and the other 20 percent are for passenger trains.

1. Super Chief
   The Orient Express
2. Flying Scotsman
   The Golden Arrow

The Orient Express is the famous passenger train that ran from Paris to Istanbul from 1883-1977. It was known for its luxury and service. It has a place in pop culture lore as the setting for Agatha Christie's famous murder mystery novel, "Murder on the Orient Express."

1. China-Europe Block Train
   New York-Los Angeles Continental Train
2. Transsiberian Train
   Moscow-Beijing Train

The China-Europe Block Train is the longest continuous ride on rails in the world. You can take a train from Spain all the way to Yiwu, China, a distance of 8,077 miles! The trip covers all of Europe and Asia.

1. Single speed
   Narrow Gauge
2. Monorail
   Broad rail

Some trains operate on a single rail system known as a monorail. The track looks like a beam, and the train moves along the top. The monorail system is popular for trains operating in Japan.

1. 1890
   1853
2. 1927
   1886

India has the fourth largest railway system in the world with half of its railway tracks operating on an electric system. The railway service in India began operation in 1853. Today, they have over 75,000 miles of railways.

1. Puffing Billy
   The John Bull
2. Starlight Express
   Fairy Queen

The Fairy Queen is the oldest steam-powered locomotive still in operation. The locomotive was built in England but started operation in Calcutta in 1855. The locomotive wasn't named the Fairy Queen until 1895.