Existing comment:
Building in the Face of War:
The Civil War came to be the greatest bloodletting in American history. The president was actively involved in all aspects of the war effort, even to the point of making suggestions about strategy to his generals.
Even as the war effort consumed his attention, Lincoln's interest in the nation's commercial development was not forgotten. In 1862, he supported and signed legislation authorizing construction of the transcontinental railroad that would link the Pacific coast with the eastern states. He also approved the Homestead Act, which created opportunity for hundreds of thousands of families by granting parcels of federally owned land to anyone willing to settle on them. |