1) Unlike Europe, where railroads were built and owned by governments, in the United States, not all railroads were built with government support; they were built by private enterprise.Both had risen to the rank of general in the United States and Confederate armies, respectively, and their nominations represented the party's attempt to overcome the regional divisions that had kept farmers apart since the end of the Civil War.Railroads Spur Settlement and Growth The completion of the Transcontinental Railroad inspired a flurry of similar railroad building.Cow Towns Cattle drives concluded in such railroad towns as Dodge City, Kansas, where the cattle were sold and the cowboys were paid.Populist Goals The Populist Party spelled out their views in their platform, which they adopted in Omaha, Nebraska, in July 1892. 8) The decision of the Democratic Party to nominate William Jennings Bryan as their presidential candidate put the election for the Populists on an entirely different plane, leading some to believe they could win the White House that year.Speculators vied for land in places where a new railroad might be built, and towns already in existence petitioned to become a stop on the western rail route. 2) Cowboys and Cattle Drives Once the cattle were rounded up, cowboys began the long cattle drive to take the animals to a railroad that would transport them to eastern markets.The Transcontinental Railroad Impacts the Frontier As industry in the West grew, the need for a railroad to transport goods increased as well.In the South, the Populist Party had to unite black and white voters if it hoped to succeed politically.The Open Range Comes to a Close Open-range ranching flourished for more than a decade after the Civil War.The Populist Party proposed specific remedies to these political issues.However, Congress encouraged.