Question

The railroads, more than any other agency, stimulated settlement of the Great Plains and shaped the pattern of development there. Discuss this statement, explaining why and how railroads helped shape the West.

Answer 1

Railroads helped many people migrate to the west, since the railroads made it much easier, quicker and cheaper to travel.

If after the railroads you decided to travel west, you only buy a train ticket, while before you had to walk or ride a house for months with a lot of supplies.

Railroads also brought many people west along with supplies, primarily food. Cities emerged all around the west where there were stops for the railroads.