Golden Spike Limited Edition Collection
The Golden Spike Collection commemorates the monumental completion of the world’s first transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869. This historic event joined the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads at Promontory Summit, Utah, uniting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans across the United States. The ceremony featured Union Pacific’s No. 119 engine and Central Pacific’s Jupiter engine, with Central Pacific President Leland Stanford driving the famed Golden Spike, symbolizing the birth of a new, interconnected America.
Prior to this achievement, explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark mapped the new U.S. territories from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean, paving the way for the concept of “manifest destiny”—the belief that it was America’s destiny to expand across North America.
Construction of the railroad began in 1832, though official work did not start until 1866. Workers, largely Chinese and Irish immigrants, faced extreme challenges and harsh conditions. In one remarkable feat, Central Pacific workers transported three engines, 40 railcars, and vital supplies across the Sierra Mountains to complete 50 miles of track. When the railroad was finished, what once took months to cross by land or sea could now be completed in days, forever altering America’s social, economic, and political landscape.
Although exact numbers are unknown, between 500 and 3,000 people witnessed the historic joining of the rails. Celebrations swept the nation as news spread via telegraph of the Great Pacific railroad’s completion. Today, the original Golden Spike is displayed at Stanford University’s Cantor Arts Center, and the Golden Spike National Historic Site marks the spot where this legendary connection was made.
The Golden Spike Collection is a tribute to the more than 4,000 workers whose labor united a nation from coast to coast. The design of the pen features a tribute to the two engines—Jupiter and No. 119—with their routes from Sacramento and Omaha etched along the cap and barrel, meeting at Promontory Summit. Each state along the journey is depicted in high relief and engraved with unique guilloché patterns. The engines are illustrated in reverse-engraving beneath the enamel.
The inscriptions “Central Pacific” and “Union Pacific” appear in high relief, with authentic period emblems adorning the crown and barrel. The gripping section is engraved with the start (January 8, 1863) and finish (May 10, 1869) dates, along with the original inscription from the Golden Spike: “May God continue the unity of our Country as this Railroad unites the two great Oceans of the world.”
As the 30th addition to the David Oscarson™ series, this limited-edition collection includes 150 pieces in two design variations, available as both fountain pens and roller balls.
