Canadian Rail_no536_2010 - Le musée ferroviaire canadien

RAIL CANADIEN • 536 134
MAI – JUIN 2010
known in Canadian history as the "national dream" - a
transcontinental railway to unify the sparsely populated
country. Canada that had been born in 1867 as a result of
the British North America Act. But to get British
Columbia to join Confederation as the sixth province in
1871, an amendment to the BNA Act entrenched a
federal promise to BC to create a transcontinental rail
link.
Construction of that link was completed as a
result of an 1881 contract between the federal
government and the seven members of the new Canadian
Pacific Railway syndicate. Then, as now, parties to
contracts were entitled to their own original copies. As
one of seven original investment partners in the CPR
syndicate and one of four original company directors,
R.B. Angus received his own handsome leather-bound
copy.
This copy - the same one that Fred Angus told
Exporail president Stephen Cheasley about - is the only
original copy known to exist today. This copy was part of
the museum's temporary exposition titled “What’s In The
Box?”. The exposition, which ran at Exporail until April
11, featured the best of Canadian railway memorabilia
donated or bequeathed to the museum during the last
five years. The title refers to the many precious items that
were mailed / delivered / or picked up by the museum in
little boxes. (Montreal Gazette)
Study of Chelsea, Quebec steam train station
contracted
A group of consultants has been hired to do a
feasibility study on a Chelsea station for the Hull-
Chelsea-Wakefield steam train. The federal government
will pay $206,550 of the study's $275,400 cost. The study
will examine the impact of a proposed train station on the
environment, local economy, drainage, water and sewer
services and transportation.
Surveys and other field work started during the
last week of November. Tim Kehoe, study director, said
the station could provide Chelsea with some economic
benefit if passengers visit Old Chelsea shops and
restaurants. Innovation Chelsea, a business group, has
proposed locating a steam train station on a 50-acre site it
owns that includes a medical clinic.
Community Table Outaouais, a group that helps
develop economic opportunities for West Quebec
residents, is participating. Other groups contributing to
the study include Caisse Desjardins de Hull, Centre local
de développement des Collines-de-l'Outaouais, Hull-
Chelsea-Wakefield Steam Train and Tourisme Outaouais.
Chelsea Mayor Caryl Green said the former passenger
rail station north of Old Chelsea played an important role
in the community until it closed during the 1960s. (Ottawa
Citizen)
Glorious railway relic sits on track to nowhere in
Ajax
A railway spur line that slows down traffic in Ajax
may be in a state of disrepair, but not the marvellous
passenger train car that resides at the end of it. The spur
that crosses Dowty Road, near Highway 401 and Westney
Road exists to permit the switching of an opulent
passenger car, the Pacific, to and from the CN.
The Pacific was built by the Canadian Car &
Foundry Company for the CNR in 1924 with six
compartments, a buffet, lounge and observation
platform. The car was originally built for charter service
to private parties. It was part of the royal train operated
for King George VI in 1939 and the whistle-stop