Thaddeus Stevens Chronicles No. 41

 Thaddeus Stevens: railroad developer

May 2024

By Ross Hetrick

Besides being a masterful politician and unrivaled lawyer, Thaddeus Stevens was an enthusiastic promoter of railroads, pushing for two early railroads in Pennsylvania and then laying the legislative groundwork in the 1860s for the Transcontinental Railroad.

Stevens's first railroad venture was the Gettysburg Extension of the Pennsylvania Main Line, nicknamed the Tapeworm Railroad because its route zig-zaged through the mountains and its cost was compared to the appetite of a tapeworm. It was to connect Gettysburg to western Maryland.

As a powerful member of the state House of Representatives, Stevens was able to get the state to pay for the construction, which started in 1836. The route was mapped out and various railroad cuts and viaducts were constructed, which can be seen around Gettysburg and Fairfield. But then the Buckshot War occurred in 1838 as a result of a disputed state election. 

The conflict resulted in both sides setting up competing legislatures in Harrisburg and then a mob was imported from Philadelphia and took over the government. At one point, Stevens had to jump out a window to escape a rampaging gang.

As a result, Stevens lost political power and the state government abandoned the Tapeworm Railroad. It lay dormant for nearly 50 years until the Western Maryland Railroad finished it, taking it to Highfield, MD.

While he was trying to connect Gettysburg to the west, Stevens was also trying to build a railroad to the east. The Wrightville, York and Gettysburg Railroad was created in 1837 after two fledgling companies were combined and Stevens became president, earning $2,000 per year..

The private company was continuously plagued with finance problems, but was finally able to open rail service between York and Wrightsville in 1840.  But it never made it to Gettysburg and it was later sold to the Northern Central Railroad.

Stevens's last big rail effort was the creation of  the Transcontinental Railroad. Anxious to connect the east and west coasts, Congress during the Civil War created the Union Pacific Railroad to build the eastern part of the rail line. But the federal government was fighting one of the most expensive wars in American history and had no money for the venture.

Stevens, the chairman of the House railroad committee, pushed the novel idea of instead of using money, Congress would provide thousands of acres of desolate land along the tracks to entice investors. "Take what land you choose; it is worth nothing to the Government," Stevens said about the proposal. "It is worth nothing except as it becomes populated, and as you [the railroad] populate it you do us a benefit."

Using this approach and coupled with his parliamentary skill, Stevens was able to get the measure passed, which laid the legislative groundwork for one of the great engineering projects of the nineteenth century.

Ross Hetrick is president of the Thaddeus Stevens Society, which is dedicated to promoting Stevens's important legacy. More information about the Great Commoner can be found at the society's website: https://www.thaddeusstevenssociety.com/.