Northern Pacific Railroad engine 398 on a wooden trestle

Northern Pacific Railroad engine 398 on a wooden trestle

c. 1895

Near Dorsey, Idaho (USA)

In contrast to the characteristic British Victoran practice of creating level roadways created by massive excavation, tunnelling, and embankments, many of which remain in use today, North American railroads both in the United States and Canada relied on timber trestles, bridges, and tracks winding around mountains