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The Construction of the Interoceanic Railroad of Guatemala

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 December 2015

Delmer G. Ross
Delmer G. Ross*
Affiliation:
Loma Linda University, Riverside, California
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Extract

For centuries the only roads in Guatemala were no more than trails—slippery and muddy during rainy seasons, dry and dusty during dry seasons, and always treacherous. Travelers who ventured outside the few cities and towns usually walked or rode horses or mules. Freight traveled similarly, on the backs of pack animals or on the backs of men. Consequently, communications were at a minimum; Guatemalans and other Central Americans were isolated. And if they had little communication among themselves, they had less with foreigners. The few ports touched occasionally by foreign ships offered little in the way of trade because of the difficulty of transportation to and from the interior. Under conditions such as these it is no wonder that prosperity was limited and that progress was slow.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Americas , Volume 33 , Issue 3 , January 1977 , pp. 430 - 456
Copyright
Copyright © Academy of American Franciscan History 1977

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References

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30 Only presidents Zaldívar of El Salvador and Bográn of Honduras came—mainly because they were little more than puppets manipulated by Barrios. The presidents of Nicaragua and Costa Rica opposed Barrios’ plans for Central American union, and sent a representative to participate solely in the inauguration of the railway. Carranza, Algunos Datos, 69.

31 Articles of Incorporation, August 20, 1885; and Articles of Association, Incorporation, Amalgamation, and Consolidation of the Guatemala Central Railroad Company and the Guatemala Central Railway Company, October 20, 1885, in Guatemala Central Railroad Company, Records (CSA).

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73 Ibid.

74 Geo. W. Davis to U. S. Secretary of State, March 30, 1914.

75 Acuerdo, November 30, 1912, in Solís, Los Ferrocarriles, 89–90.