WASHINGTON, Feb. 28, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28: RAILROAD DEVELOPMENT

Profile America — Thursday, February 28th.  Although February is the calendar's shortest month, it stands tall in America's history of railroad development. In 1815, the first state charter for a railroad was issued by New Jersey, for a never completed line between Trenton and New Brunswick. On this date in 1827, the famed Baltimore and Ohio Railroad were chartered to carry passengers and freight. February 1830 saw the first charter for an interstate railroad to serve Virginia and North Carolina. While the iron horse is no longer so singularly vital to transportation, nearly $12 billion of rolling stock are manufactured annually. You can find more facts about America's people, places and economy from the American Community Survey at www.census.gov.

Sources:  Kane's Famous First Facts, pg. 459, 460 
Library of Congress, Today in History 
2007 Economic Census, NAICS 336510

Profile America is produced by the Center for New Media and Promotions of the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on a monthly CD or on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look for "Multimedia Gallery" by the "Newsroom" button). 

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau