A red carpet was rolled out to a river to welcome the arrival of United States president James Monroe in 1821. In 1902, the New York Central Railroad began using plush crimson carpets to direct people as they boarded their 20th Century Limited passenger train. This is believed to be the origin of the phrase "red-carpet treatment".

The origin of the phrase ‘red carpet treatment’, meanwhile, is thought to derive from the start of the 20th Century, when the red carpet was co-opted by the railroads. An exclusive, express passenger train run by the New York Central Railroad from 1902 welcomed its passengers aboard with a red carpet, which also helped guide them onto the train.