China Wall

More than 8,000 Chinese workers brought from China labored for years to build the Central Pacific Railroad from Sacramento to Utah, working sunrise to sunset, six days a week, fifty-two weeks a year. They endured avalanches, blasting accidents, rock slides, blizzards, icy cold, exhaustion, and prejudice while building a rail route through the rugged Sierra with a maximum 3% grade. Fifteen tunnels were blasted through solid granite at only inches of progress a day, high spots were cut, trestles and bridges were built to span rivers, and low spots were filled in. China Wall is one such low spot, filled by hand with rubble from a nearby tunnel, and stands as an example of their work. Judge E.B. Crocker credited the railroad's early completion in large measure to the fidelity and industry of Chinese laborers.

California · United States