Galluping on the Iron Horse

Polling on trains was convenient for journalists, who needed to travel for assignments anyway. Yet newspapers often published straw polls contributed by readers who were themselves traveling on trains. One man who traveled extensively during the summer of 1856 polled 2,886 people during his trips through the Northeast. All twenty-three of the individual votes taken during his train rides were published by The New York Times. Additionally, this gentleman provided commentary on how these statistics were compiled and patterns noticed in the data. For example, he noted that "of literary men, collegiate professors, teachers &c., seven-eighths were Republicans," and that "of forty-two ministers of the Gospel, thirty-nine affirmed they should vote for Fremont; one for Buchanan, and two for Fillmore." Although there were some exceptions, reporters and corres- pondents rarely attempted to connect the passengers' area of residence, political party, or ethnicity with their choice of candidate: the only important piece of information was the way a particular individual planned to vote. During the 1896 election, a railway employee reported poll data to the Chicago Tribune:

John J. Byrnes, General Passenger Agent and Auditor of the Southern California railroad, reached Chicago yesterday morning on a Santa Fe train on which, among other passengers, were seventy-five Californians. Some one polled the denizens of the Far West and Bryan got fifteen votes. Just before Mr. Byrnes came East a large manufacturing plant in Los Angeles in which 1000 men are employed was polled, and McKinley was the choice of 997. Mr. Byrnes, who until this campaign has been a Democrat, is confident Mr. McKinley will carry California by a big majority.

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