The American Civil war certainly brought the railroad to play a key strategic role. It was the main asset for the movement of troops and material and its development, particularly in the rail tracks mileage layed was amazing, the Union Army ended the war with the largest railroad infrastructure in the world. Armies would often operate along railroad lines and their plans were many times subject to their distance to the base supply. Lee ended the war at Appomattox trying to reach a supply depot where a train with ammo and other supplies suppose to await him.

During WWI, or better said right prior to it European Armies had cadres of Officer Railroad Engineers in their ranks for the sole purpose of managing general mobilizations. Mobilization and Army performance could be measured by how many trains could be dispatched from strategic locations to the front in periods of 24 hrs. Germans got very good at it and many European railroads, especially in central Europe, were built with their military use in mind determining many lines not only those of civilian interest.