U.S. government takes over control of nation's railroads
Eight months after the United States enters World War I on behalf of the Allies, President Woodrow Wilson announces the nationalization of a large majority of the country's railroads under the Federal Possession and Control Act.
The U.S. entry into the war in April 1917 coincided with a downturn in the fortunes of the nation's railroads: rising taxes and operations costs, combined with prices that were fixed by law, had pushed many railroad companies into receivership as early as late 1915. A year later, in a last-minute bill passed through Congress, Wilson had forced the railroad management to accept union demands for an eight-hour work day. Still, many skilled workers were leaving the cash-poor railroads to work in the booming armaments industry or to enlist in the war effort.
By the end of 1917, it seemed that the existing railroad system was not up to the task of supporting the war effort and Wilson decided on nationalization. Two days after his announcement, the United States Railroad Administration (USRA) seized control. William McAdoo, Wilson's secretary of the treasury, was appointed Director General of Railroads. The railroads were subsequently divided into three divisions—East, West and South. Passenger services were streamlined, eliminating a significant amount of inessential travel. Over 100,000 new railroad cars and 1,930 steam engines were ordered--designed to the latest standards--at a total cost of $380 million.
In March 1918, the Railroad Control Act was passed into law. It stated that within 21 months of a peace treaty, the railroads would be returned by the government to their owners and that the latter would be compensated for the usage of their property. Consequently, the USRA was disbanded two years later, in March 1920, and the railroads became private property once again.
美国加入第一次世界大战后，伍德罗·威尔逊总统宣布将大部分铁路收归国有，并颁布了《联邦所有和控制法案》。
1917年4月，美国参加一战，正值美国铁路运营萧条之际，不断增高的税收和运行成本，政府对铁路营运价格的控制，使得很多铁路公司早在1915年底就纷纷宣告破产。1916年威尔逊总统批准一项法案，要求美国铁路实行8小时工作制，尽管如此，很多熟练工还是纷纷离开铁路公司，转而进入热火朝天的军工企业。
到了1917年底，铁路部门似乎已经无法胜任支援战争的运输任务，威尔逊决定实施铁路国有化。在他发布命令两天后，美国铁路管理局接管美国铁路控制权。威廉·麦卡杜，威尔逊内阁的财政部长，被任命为美国铁路总局局长。随后，美国的铁路系统分成了三部分：东部、西部和南部。客运服务得到改善，一些无关紧要的运行线路被撤销。按照最新铁路标准，政府采购的10万多节新车厢和1930台蒸汽发动机迅速上马，项目资金达到3.8亿美元。
1918年3月，铁路控制法颁布，该法律声称，21个月以后，美国政府将把铁路的控制权归还给私有企业，并发放铁路使用补偿金给他们。两年以后（1918年11月11日，一战结束），美国铁路管理局解散，1920年3月，美国铁路系统重归私有。