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unusual facts about Pacific Railroad survey



John Parke

As an engineer, he determined the boundary lines between Iowa and the Little Colorado River, surveyed routes for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean, and was the chief surveyor of the party charged with the delineation of the boundary of the northwest United States and British North America, 1857–1861.

John Williams Gunnison

On May 3, 1853 he received orders to take charge of an expedition to survey a route for a Pacific railroad between the 38th and 39th parallels.

Joseph Christmas Ives

As a Second lieutenant from 1853 to 1854 he was appointed by the U.S. Army to the Topographical Engineers as assistant to Lt. Amiel Weeks Whipple in the Pacific Railroad survey along the 35th parallel.


see also