Which National Park Service site commemorates the 1869 completion of the first transcontinental railroad?

Golden Spike National Historical Park commemorates the 1869 completion of the first transcontinental railroad.

The historic ceremony took place at Promontory Summit in Utah on May 10, 1869. Central Pacific Railroad tracks advancing from the west met Union Pacific Railroad tracks advancing from the east, creating the first rail connection across the United States.

A ceremonial golden spike symbolized the joining of the rails. The event is often called the “Wedding of the Rails,” although the rail network was not yet a completely seamless coast-to-coast route because Omaha and Sacramento still required connecting lines to reach the major seaports.

The site was first authorized as Golden Spike National Historic Site in 1957 and became a national historical park in 2019. The park displays replicas of the Jupiter and Union Pacific No. 119 locomotives and presents reenactments of the famous ceremony.