Financial Panic of 1907, Rogers Suffers A Stroke
While secrecy was a key feature of the success in securing the route, historians feel it is likely that Rogers had planned to finance the new railroad with sale of bonds to the public once the route had been secured, the two roads combined, and the name changed. However, these plans had suffered some setbacks in the "Financial Panic" which began in March 1907. An initial offering of Virginian Railway bonds was poorly received by the financial community. Rogers was quite concerned about the situation, and then, a few months later that same year, he experienced a debilitating stroke. Work on the new railroad was at a virtual standstill throughout much of 1908. His published correspondence with his close friend Mark Twain alludes to the personal stress which resulted from the "great railroad enterprise."
Fortunately for the new railroad, Henry Rogers recovered his health, at least partially. Work progressed on the VGN using construction techniques not available when the larger railroads had been built about 25 years earlier. By paying for work with Henry Rogers' own personal fortune, the railway was built with no public debt. Construction, although slowed substantially during 1908, was continued on the new railroad until it was finally completed early in 1909.
Read more about this topic: Building The Virginian Railway
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