Near Site, Southern Pacific Ceremony of Silver Spike

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker says, standing near the site where two railroads shook hands in iron and silver. Now, some stories end with a handshake. This one ends with a spike.

A silver one. And to appreciate what that moment meant, you have to go back to where it all began. The eastern part of this railroad originated right here in Texas, back in the eighteen fifties.

It got rechartered in 1870 by the Texas Legislature, and came out the other side with a name as long as the route itself: the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Highway. The idea was to connect Houston and San Antonio all the way to the Rio Grande. That was the dream, anyway.

Then in 1874, a man named T. W. Pierce of Boston gained control of the line.

Pierce had ambition. He was pushing west. Meanwhile, out on the other side of the continent, a fellow named C.

P. Huntington of California was building the Southern Pacific eastward. And Huntington, well, he wanted a Texas line to join his tracks.

So he and Pierce reached an agreement. Two roads, two directions, one destination. And then came January the twelfth, 1883.

The two railroads met near the Pecos High Bridge. And they were joined, right there, by a Silver Spike. Not an iron spike.

Not a steel spike. Silver. Because some moments deserve something more than ordinary metal to mark them.

What the marker says

Marked completion of Southern Pacific Railway. Eastern part originated in Texas in 1850s; then was rechartered 1870 by Texas Legislature as Galveston, Harrisburg & San Antonio Hwy., designed to join Houston and San Antonio to the Rio Grande. T. W. Pierce of Boston gained control in 1874. Meantime, C. P. Huntington of California was building the Southern Pacific eastward; he wanted a Texas line to join his tracks, and reached agreement with Pierce. On Jan. 12, 1883, the two railroads met near the Pecos High Bridge, and were joined by a Silver Spike. (1967)