The Canadian Pacific Railway

A History of the Railroad Steam-powered railways in the 19th century revolutionized transportation in Canada and was integral to the success of Confederation. Railway fever came later to BNA, which had a small population and much of its capital tied up in the expansion of its canals and inland waterways.

The Province of Canada (1841) was an enormous country. Its roads were poor and its waterways were frozen for up to 5 months per year. The first true railway built in Canada was the Champlain and Saint Lawrence Railroad.

The Results of Railway Advancement Extended into new territories: – agricultural and timber frontiers westward and northward. Tied together and opened new market opportunities while also creating a demand for fuel, iron and steel. Wood-burning locomotives fuelled the need for timber and supported an expanding use of a staple trade. Stimulated engineering (bridges and tunnels).

Canadian Inventions Resulting from the Railroad – Braking system (W.A. Robinson, 1868) – Rotary snowplough (J.W. Elliott, 1869; developed further by O. Jull) – Standardized Time (Sir Sandford Fleming)

Confederation and The Railroad An Intercolonial Railway was a condition written into the Constitution Act, The railway was owned and operated by the federal government and was largely financed with British loans backed by imperial guarantees. Sandford Fleming built the Intercolonial to the highest standards and completed it by 1876.

1871: BC was lured into Confederation with the promise of a transcontinental railway within 10 years. The proposed line represented an enormous expenditure for a nation of only 3.5 million people.

Pacific Scandal Two organizations competed for the contract to expand the railroad to B.C. It was secretly promised to Sir Hugh Allan by PM John A. MacDonald, George-Étienne Cartier, and Hector Langevin in return for financial support for the Conservatives during the closely contested 1872 election. MacDonald won the election, however his previous majority was greatly diminished.

Pacific Scandal…after the election Allan was awarded the contract to build. The Liberals broke the scandal on April 2, The government managed to survive a royal commission struck on August 14, but it could not survive Parliament. The Commons met on October 23; the Macdonald government was obliged to resign. Allan's company never did get started, and a new agreement had to wait until 1880.

The CPR Macdonald returned to power in 1878, with the completion of the railway as one facet of his National Policy, The Canadian Pacific Railway was incorporated on February 16, The difficulties of construction and demand for early completion of the line ensured generous financial provisions to the company, including cash, land, costly surveys, and a monopoly over transportation south to the US for 20 years. In the face of American expansion westward, Macdonald and the federal Conservatives considered completion of the railway a national imperative.

Construction Construction through the rock and mountains was a challenge to the engineering technologies of the time. Extreme difficulties in obtaining an adequate work force in BC led to the controversial importation of thousands of Chinese labourers. At the height of the building activity approximately 9000 workers, were Chinese.

Chinese Labourers Construction of the railway brought approximately 17,000 Chinese men to British Columbia from 1880 to 1884.

Harsh conditions at home in China, led them to seek a better life for themselves and their families in Canada. Earned $1.00 a day; still having to pay for food, camping and cooking gear. White workers did not have to pay for these things even though they were paid more money ($1.50-$2.50 per day).

Life on the Line for Immigrant Labourers Chinese workers were given the most back- breaking and dangerous work to do. – cleared and graded the railway's roadbed. – blasted tunnels through the rock. – There were accidents, fires and disasters. – Landslides and dynamite blasts killed many. There was no proper medical care and many Chinese workers depended on herbal cures to help them.

A Part of Our Heritage

The line through to the Pacific coast was completed with the driving of the "Last Spike" at Craigellachie in Eagle Pass, BC, on November 7, The first through passenger train left Montréal 28 June 1886 and arrived at Port Moody, BC, July 4.

125 Years Later

CPR & the Future of Canadian Expansion The greatest challenge was to develop business to make the line self-sustaining. Though settlement proceeded rapidly in the wake of the rail lines, population in western Canada was insufficient to sustain the line fully for many years. To increase business, the corporation became very active in promoting trade in the Pacific. Within days of the arrival of the first train on the west coast in 1886, sailing vessels chartered by the CPR began to arrive from Japan, bringing tea, silk and curios.

By 1900 the mountain hotel system had expanded into the major cities – Hotel Vancouver (1887) – Québec's Château Frontenac (1893) – Montréal's Place Viger (1898).

The Legacy Between 1899 and 1913, the CPR increased its trackage from approximately km to km. More than half of the new track was in the Prairie provinces, and it was intended both to provide branch lines into areas of need and to ensure that the CPR would remain competitive in relation to the developing transcontinental lines or the Canadian Northern Railway and the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway.

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