Last week the 150th anniversary of the Transcontinental Railroad was recognized, as were the 10,000 Irish immigrants who built it. 

Dan Mulhall, Irish Ambassador to the United States, was a special guest as big crowds commemorated driving the "golden spike."

Union Pacific crews had been working westward from Omaha while Pacific Central crews were working eastward from Sacramento. Pacific Central workers responded to the competition by laying 10 miles of track in one day, thanks to eight Irish tracklayers who put down 3520 rails themselves!

I don't recall hearing that fact when we learned as kids about the Transcontinental Railroad uniting the country. I wonder who the Irish men were and what happened to them. 

On May 10, 1869 the two crews met at Promontory Point, Utah, where the golden spike was hammered into the final tie.