... along gold and silver spikes for the official ceremony. The chosen symbol for the ceremony was a golden spike which was to be driven in by the Governor of California, Leland Stanford. The band stopped playing and a prayer was said. The telegraph operator was connected with San Francisco and New York and was ready to send the first coast-to-coast commentary ... who wanted to take part in free and cheap land in areas that were well watered. A third factor was the sale of land by states at attractive prices. School lands, university lands, and other state lands were put on the market in co...

• Word Count: 2617
• Approx Pages: 10
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School