Great Northern Railway tracks cut through rock, ca 1892 (MOHAI 6916)

The workers who built the Great Northern Railway through Stevens Pass in the Cascade Mountains had to blast their way through solid rock to make an easier grade for the tracks. This was done with hand tools and dynamite, not with heavy drilling machinery.
This photo, taken during the winter of 1892-1893, shows the Great Northern Railway tracks passing through a cut in the Cascade Mountains, near Stevens Pass.
Original title: Cut at Sta. 780 main line. West of summit
Subjects (LCTGM): Great Northern Railway Company (U.S." Railroad cuts; Railroad tracks; Snow