(From Scribner's Statistical Atlas.)
Railway Mileage by States, 1880.
| Rank | State | Miles | ||||||
| 47 | Mont. | 106 | » | |||||
| 46 | Ida. | 206 | » | |||||
| 45 | R.I. | 210 | » | |||||
| 44 | Del. | 275 | »» | |||||
| 43 | Wash. | 289 | »» | |||||
| 42 | I. T. | 289 | »» | |||||
| 41 | Ariz. | 349 | »» | |||||
| 40 | Oreg. | 508 | »»» | |||||
| 39 | Wyo. | 512 | »»» | |||||
| 38 | Fla. | 518 | »»» | |||||
| 37 | La. | 652 | »»»» | |||||
| 36 | W. Va. | 691 | »»»» | |||||
| 35 | Nev. | 739 | »»»» | |||||
| 34 | N.Mex. | 758 | »»»» | |||||
| 33 | Utah | 842 | »»»»» | |||||
| 32 | Ark. | 859 | »»»»» | |||||
| 31 | Vt. | 914 | »»»»» | |||||
| 30 | Conn. | 923 | »»»»» | |||||
| 29 | Me. | 1,005 | »»»»»» | |||||
| 28 | N.H. | 1,015 | »»»»»» | 2,000 Miles | ||||
| 27 | *Md. | 1,040 | »»»»»» | |||||
| 26 | Miss. | 1,127 | »»»»»» | |||||
| 25 | Dak. | 1,225 | »»»»»» | |||||
| 24 | S.C. | 1,427 | »»»»»»» | |||||
| 23 | N.C. | 1,486 | »»»»»»» | |||||
| 22 | Ky. | 1,530 | »»»»»»» | |||||
| 21 | Colo. | 1,570 | »»»»»»» | |||||
| 20 | N.J. | 1,684 | »»»»»»»» | |||||
| 19 | Tenn. | 1,843 | »»»»»»»» | |||||
| 18 | Ala. | 1,843 | »»»»»»»» | |||||
| 17 | Va. | 1,893 | »»»»»»»»» | |||||
| 16 | Mass. | 1,915 | »»»»»»»»» | 4,000 | ||||
| 15 | Nebr. | 1,953 | »»»»»»»»» | |||||
| 14 | Cal. | 2,195 | »»»»»»»»» | » | ||||
| 13 | Ga. | 2,459 | »»»»»»»»» | »» | ||||
| 12 | Minn. | 3,151 | »»»»»»»»» | »»»» | ||||
| 11 | Wis. | 3,155 | »»»»»»»»» | »»»» | ||||
| 10 | Tex. | 3,244 | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»» | ||||
| 9 | Kans. | 3,400 | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»» | ||||
| 8 | Mich. | 3,938 | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»»»»» | 6,000 | |||
| 7 | Mo. | 3,965 | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»»»»» | ||||
| 6 | Ind. | 4,373 | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»»»»» | »» | 8,000 | ||
| 5 | Iowa | 5,400 | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»»»»» | »»»» | |||
| 4 | Ohio | 5,792 | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»» | 10,000 | ||
| 3 | N.Y. | 5,991 | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»»»» | |||
| 2 | Pa. | 6,191 | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»»»»» | » | ||
| 1 | Ill. | 7,851 | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»»»»» | »»»»»»»» | ||
* Includes District of Columbia.
It is difficult to believe that so many roads could have been added in ten years. All the 1870 area north of the Ohio River seems crowded at nearly every point, and the network of advance westward, in the States of Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota, Kansas, Nebraska, and Dakota, is equally surprising. The growth in Texas was also very large, and many new lines appear in other Southern States. The total increase of the ten years was over forty thousand miles (40,374).
It would not seem possible that this rate of building could be longer maintained, and yet the 1889 map shows a still greater growth. At the close of 1888 (only eight years), the increase was 62,785 miles.
Railways in the United States, 1889
(From the "Scribner-Black Atlas of the World.")