The railroad stretched from Sacramento, California, to Omaha, Nebraska, where it wouldn’t even have a permanent connection to the Union Pacific’s terminus in Council Bluffs, Iowa, until 1872 — roughly covering only half of the North American continent from east to west. And even after its connection to the rest of the national rail network, for more than 150 years, not one single railroad stretched from coast-to-coast.

However, with Tuesday’s announcement that the Union Pacific Railroad and Norfolk Southern Railway have agreed to merge operations, a true coast-to-coast transcontinental railway could be around the corner.

“Railroads have been an integral part of building America since the Industrial Revolution, and this transaction is the next step in advancing the industry,” Union Pacific Chief Executive Officer Jim Vena said in a press release about the merger. “Imagine seamlessly hauling steel from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Colton, California and moving tomato paste from Huron, California to Fremont, Ohio. Lumber from the Pacific Northwest, plastics from the Gulf Coast, copper from Arizona and Utah, and soda ash from Wyoming. Right now, tens of thousands of railroaders are moving almost everything we use. You name it, and at some point, the railroad hauled it.”

The Union Pacific Railroad has ultimately been a part of Ogden economically and culturally for the vast majority of the city’s life. And while the Ogden area continues to play an important role on the railroad — hosting rail yards in Ogden and Riverdale and serving as an important junction for the railroad in all directions — initial reports are that little will change for the area if the merger stands up to federal scrutiny.

The press release notes that union employees would have a place in a combined railroad.

“Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern union employees — including train crew, mechanical and engineering — will have job opportunities with the combined company,” the release said. “Beyond job security, expected rail volume growth will drive additional employment opportunities in towns and cities across the combined rail network. Non-union workers will have opportunities to grow as part of a larger, combined enterprise.”

The Standard-Examiner reached out to the Union Pacific Railroad, and a representative shared a page noting that the Union Pacific employed 945 people throughout the state of Utah in 2024 and was responsible for $42 million in capital investments last year.

This representative did not elaborate on specific impacts to the Ogden area.

The Standard-Examiner also reached out to Ogden City for its reaction but received no reply as of press time.

Culturally, the Union Pacific’s legacy is well-represented at the Utah State Railroad Museum and Spencer S. and Hope F. Eccles Rail Center located at the Museums at Union Station.

However, Hope Eggett said it’s unlikely the museums will be collecting any black horse-emblazoned equipment or memorabilia if the merger goes through.

“As the Utah State Railroad Museum, we focus on Utah’s railroad history and legacy as our scope of collection,” she said. “With this framework, Norfolk Southern hasn’t historically operated in Utah, so we would be unlikely to collect any documents or equipment from their history.”

However, she said that Utah’s history of rail mergers is well-represented at the museums.

“Railroads historically have been fiercely competitive,” she said. “Many of Utah’s former railroads merged over the years, especially as passenger traffic decline. This includes the Denver and Rio Grande Western’s merger with Southern Pacific, and Southern Pacific with Union Pacific. It’s a long legacy.”

Union Pacific’s purchase of Norfolk Southern is still not complete at this time. The purchase is subject to approval by the Surface Transportation Board. The press release notes that it is hoped the transaction will be approved and completed by 2027.

For more information, visit https://www.up-nstranscontinental.com/.