In 1857 the Argentine railway company "Camino de Hierro de Buenos Aires al Oeste" opens the first steam locomotive public railway in Argentina and few years later the company was planning to extend the line westward to Moreno. The construction of the railway made land speculation a highly profitable activity. In order to reach Merlo the line had to pass through the land owned by the Pearson Family and Dillon saw the opportunity to make huge profits by selling out parts of the family's estate.