Transcontinental Express reaches San Francisco in record time

Background. The first transcontinental railroad was a continuous line built between 1863 and 1869, connecting the eastern U.S. rail network to the Pacific coast at the Oakland Long Wharf on San Francisco Bay. The route facilitated overland access to the eastern U.S. rail system, helping make the Bay Area a center for trade. The Central Pacific completed its rail connection to the western terminus at Oakland on November 8, 1869, from which freight and passengers completed the transcontinental link to San Francisco by ferry.

Record Run. In June 1876, an express train named the Transcontinental Express departed New York City and arrived in San Francisco. The journey took 83 hours and 39 minutes. The train ran over the first transcontinental railroad, which had opened for through traffic between Sacramento and Omaha on May 10, 1869, with the western rail connection to Oakland completed on November 8, 1869.