Phineas Gage

The 1840s in the northeastern United States was an exciting and dangerous time, and it was all about the railroad lines that would eventually connect the enormous continent.

Although steam power had been around for a long time, the UK made the first successful steam locomotives during the earlier part of the century, and the promise of faster and more reliable transportation led to “Railway Mania”, where a vast network of railroads sprung up unbelievably quickly.

Investment dollars poured in across the pond, too, and while the US was vastly bigger than the UK, the enthusiasm fueling the desire to connect east and west, north and south became a mania of its own. While there was more rugged terrain in the US to cover, there was no shortage of bold, rugged investors and managers who were willing to push and drive (mainly) immigrant labor.

Phineas Gage worked on these railroads as a foreman, which meant that he was ultimately responsible for the dangerous work of clearing land and preparin…