What was the name of the company at the center of the 1867 Crédit Mobilier scandal?

Crédit Mobilier was the company at the center of the 1867 Crédit Mobilier scandal. The construction company was created by insiders connected to the Union Pacific Railroad to handle contracts for building the transcontinental railroad.

Crédit Mobilier charged Union Pacific far more than the actual construction costs for some work, generating large profits for its principals. Shares were distributed or sold at favorable prices to several members of Congress, helping secure political protection and damaging public confidence in railroad financing.

The scandal became public in 1872 after information was provided to the New York Sun. Congressman Oakes Ames was censured, and Congressman James Brooks was also condemned by the House. The affair is often confused with a scandal involving Union Pacific itself, but Crédit Mobilier was the separate construction company used in the transactions.