What railroad for which Oakes Ames is credit as being the single most important influence in building was caught up in the  Crédit Mobilier scandal?
Crédit Mobilier of America scandal The Crédit Mobilier scandal of 1867, which came to public attention in 1872, involved the Union Pacific Rail Road and the Crédit Mobilier of America construction company in the building of the eastern portion of the First Transcontinental Railroad. The scandal was in two parts. The construction company charged the railroad far higher rates than usual, and cash and $9 million in discounted stock were given as bribes to 15 powerful Washington politicians, including the Vice-President, the Secretary of the Treasury, four senators, and the Speaker and other members of the House.
John H. Inman John Hamilton Inman (23 October 1844 - 5 November 1896) was an American capitalist who invested in cotton, coal, iron and steel, and railroads, especially in the impoverished American South during the Reconstruction Era. While he is remembered as a tycoon in the age of "laissez-faire", cut-throat capitalism, he nevertheless helped the economic development of his native state and the South in general.