ABSTRACT: A letter of invitation to the opening of the first 40 miles of the Union Pacific Railroad.
SCOPE: The letter of invitation was written by Samuel Hallet, who developed the Eastern Branch of the Union Pacific Railway. They were sent out in July 1864 from Saint Louis to various notables.
EXTENT: 1 page letter
HISTORY: On July 1, 1862, the Union Pacific Railroad Company was formed. They were tasked with building a railroad from the Missouri River to the Pacific to help reinforce Union efforts throughout the Civil War. Samuel Hallet was responsible for developing the first 40 miles of track west of the Missouri River. He joined this effort in 1863 when he bought a controlling interest in the Leavenworth, Pawnee, and West Railroad, which eventually formed the Union Pacific Eastern Division.
ACCESS: This collection can be viewed on-site in the Rare Book and Manuscripts Reading Room. Some of the material may be photocopied, digitally scanned or photographed, subject to condition and other access restrictions. Information on conducting research with the archival collections of the Library, including current building hours and reading room policies, can be found on our Research page. The St. Louis Mercantile Library is located on levels one and two of the Thomas Jefferson Library building on the University of Missouri-St. Louis’ north campus.
Preferred Citation note: The preferred citation for this collection is “From the collections of the John W. Barriger III National Railroad Library at the University of Missouri – St. Louis."
