The two of us arose at the Super 8 in Duncan and after our Internet duties, at the Dog House Family Restaurant where Elizabeth had a veggie omelette and I had French Toast and bacon. It was a short drive to the Duncan station.
Canadian National caboose 79124, ex. Canadian National box car 405122, nee Canadian Northern Railways 86244, built by Canadian Car and Foundry in 1919. It was rebuilt into a caboose in 1957.
Duncan Canadian Pacific station built in 1912. Robert Dunsmuir, the E&N railway builder, planned to put the station north of here. The locals rallied and convinced Dunsmuir and Prime Minister Macdonald to build the train station in its current location. The station, known as Duncan's Crossing, was born in 1887. The city flourished because of the station and businesses (banks, prestigious hotels, a creamery and other stores) and churches moved to Duncan. The original station quickly outgrew its capacity; it was replaced by the current station in 1912. The second floor was home to the station master and his family. For years the railway was an essential service for agriculture, mining, forestry and passengers. Soldiers during World War I and World War II said their goodbyes on the platform.
Passenger service declined as more people used automobiles, but freight service continued. The Duncan Train Station evolved with the times and became the Cowichan Valley Museum in 1989. Today, the station remains a landmark building in downtown Duncan, is listed on the Canadian Register of Historic Places, and importantly remains in its original location.
The City of Duncan plaque that designated the station as the first historic building in the city.
Duncan station and caboose information.
Vancouver Island is home to many Indian tribes and there is a totem pole display beside the station.
Information pedastels about the totem poles. We next drove to the Duncan Forest Museum.
BC Forest Discovery Centre InformationFrom its origins as a private collection assembled by founder Gerry Wellburn and his family, the BC Forest Discovery Centre has grown to become one of Duncan's favorite attractions. The museum's collections include over 5,000 artifacts ranging from operational steam locomotives to chainsaws, as well as a dozen heritage buildings.
Before opening the doors of the BC Forestry Museum in 1965, Gerry Wellburn had been accumulating a quite extensive collection of trains and other forestry related items. He started his collection for his personal enjoyment and the museum for the community.
Born in Yorkshire, England in 1900, Gerry moved to Victoria with his family where his father ran a grocery store at the corner of Pandora and Cook. Young Gerry had started collecting stamps in England so when he discovered both British Columbia and Vancouver Island had once issued their own stamps he became fascinated. He visited many of the older residents of Victoria to collect old letters and to hear their stories of British Columbia's beginnings. He also spent his time riding as many trains as he could find. He graduated from Victoria High School with members of prominent Victoria families including Bruce Hutchinson and Ansley Helmcken.
His first job was with the circulation department of a Victoria newspaper. His duties took him on trips up the Island where he observed that there were more jobs and opportunities than in Victoria. In 1923 he moved his wife Ethel May and daughter Lois to Courtenay where he worked in logging and sawmilling. He was soon promoted to foreman and worked for several companies on the Island and mainland.
In the early 1930’s he founded Wellburn Timbers Limited, a sawmilling and logging company in Duncan. In 1943 he sold the company to his friend H. R. MacMillan and continued on as manager of what is now the Shawnigan Division of MacMillan & Bloedel Ltd.
During his career, Gerry started logging with six horses; progressed to using steam yarders and was one of the first to use Caterpillar tractors and trucks. He and others proved that not only were trucks cheaper to run than railways but that the flexibility of being able to select cutting areas provided much improved forest practices. He was a founder of the Truck Loggers Association and made an honorary member of the Association of Professional Foresters.
Always active in community affairs Gerry Wellburn was president of the Duncan Chamber of Commerce and the Victory Bond sales drives during the second world war. He was the Chairman of the Duncan Hospital Society for 12 years and was successful in obtaining the funds for a new hospital for the district.
We stopped to admire the steam engine outside the museum.
Bloedel, Stewart and Welch Limited 2 truck Shay 1, ex. Glenora and Western 1 1966, exx. MacMillan and Bloedel 1 1953, exx. Bloedel, Stewart and Welch 1, exxxx. Great Central Sawmills 1 1937, nee Bloedel, Stewart and Welch 2, built by Lima Locomotive Works in 1911.
Bloedel, Stewart & Welch was formed in 1911 by US lumberman Julius Bloedel and railway contractors John Stewart and Patrick Welch. Bloedel was attracted to British Columbia by the availability of timber and pending relaxation of United States import duties on Canadian lumber. The partnership proved sound, as Stewart and Welch quickly secured the company a 40 million board foot (1800 car load) contract to supply materials for construction of the Grand Trunk Railway between Edmonton to Prince Rupert. A similar contract was issued in 1912 for the first phase of construction of the Pacific Great Eastern Railway from Vancouver to Prince George.
BS&W’s first logging operation was at Myrtle Point, near Powell River, for which the Shay was purchased new from the Lima Locomotive Works and assigned road number 1. At that time, wood was the standard fuel and 42 tons was large for a logging locie. This was also the era before air brakes were mandatory – when logging locomotives commonly had steam brakes and the detached trucks on which the logs were transported, had only hand brakes that were set by brakemen, in accordance with locomotive whistle signals from the engineer. By 1925, BS&W had purchased and was logging extensive holdings of prime timber in the Union Bay, Menzies Bay and Alberni areas on Vancouver Island. No.1 worked at the Menzies Bay, Great Central Lake and Franklin River operations. By 1937, when No.1 was transferred to the Franklin River Camp, 42 ton wood burners had been supplanted by larger oil burning engines, so No.1 was relegated to bull-cook (light) duties and saw very little service.
Following the amalgamation of BS&W and H.R. MacMillan Export, creating MacMillan & Bloedel Limited, No.1 was taken to Vancouver in 1953 in preparation for sale to Philippine interests. When the deal fell-through, the locomotive was sent to the company’s Chemainus Division, where it was lettered as M&B No.1. Destined for scrapping, it was purchased by local lumberman and museum founder, Gerry Wellburn, as the first item of a large personal collection that evolved into the Cowichan Valley Forest Museum in 1964. The engine was put on display at the museum entrance in 1966 and remains there still.
Toward the end of its working life, the veteran locomotive was known affectionately as "The Old One-Spot" and "The Last Of The Wood Burners", NB: The "Spot" referred to the dot painted to the lower right of locomotive road numbers, and which loggers referred to as a “spot” and included with the number when speaking of a locomotives.
The Old One-Spot’s working life spanned many evolutions in BC logging – the era of steam power, the introduction of high-lead yarding and duplex-loading (at Myrtle Point) and the use of chain saws and hard hats (at Franklin River). Julius Bloedel seems to have had a special affection for his "Old One Spot", which may explain why it was never sold, scrapped or converted to burn oil. His final years were spent in the company of No. 1's bell, which was loaned to his family.
British Columbia Forest Products log flat car 121 behind of the locomotive. We paid our admission to this great foresty museum.
Shawnigan Lake Lumber 2 truck Climax 2, ex. B.C. Provincial Train 1979. exx. Channel Logging 2, exxx. Cameron Lumber company 1, exxxx. Sahtlam Lumber 2 1928, nee Shawnigan Lake Lumber 2 1924, built by Climax in 1910.
Shawnigan Lake Lumber operated a sawmill on the E&N Railway at Shawnigan Lake between 1889 and 1943, when the company was acquired by H.R. MacMillan Export. Logging methods progressed from ground lead yarding, to a six-foot gauge pole railway using first horses, then a homemade wooden lokie and then a 15 ton Style "A" Climax (Betsy), then to a standard gauge railway, starting in 1905.
Number 2 was purchased when increasing hauling distance and production rate could not be met by No.1. Similar circumstances resulted in the locomotive being sold to Sahtlam Lumber in 1922, when a 70-ton Climax was purchased to work with Betsy. In 1924, Number 2 was sold to nearby Channel Logging, on the CNR, 5 miles south of the community of Lake Cowichan.
In 1929, Channel Logging encroached on timber owned by Cameron Lumber and the locomotive was held as collateral at Cameron’s camp, just off the CNR at Deerholme, 3 miles west of Duncan. When the Great Depression caused both operations to close in 1930, Number 2 was abandoned in the wilderness, until Duncan resident Granger Taylor plowed a road through one-half mile of forest to rescue it in 1969. By then the locomotive was in a sad state – the wooden cab having rotted-away, its trucks and drive shafts missing and trees were growing through its frame. The trucks reportedly were salvaged by Hillcrest Lumber, during World War II, for use on company speeders.
Taylor restored the engine to operation at his residence (known as the "Sleepy Hollow Museum", using freight car trucks and industrial power transmission components. In 1973, his interest had switched to airplane construction, and Number 2 was sold to the provincial government, which at that time was interested in the preservation of historical artifacts.
Following further restoration at British Columbia Forest Product’s Caycuse Camp, Number 2 toured the province between 1975 and 1979 as a working display on a flat car of the (then) Provincial Museum's museum train. Since 1980, it has been on display at the BC Forest Discovery Centre. As well as being one of only two authentic Climax locomotives preserved in Canada (both at the BC Forest Discovery Centre), it features the T-shaped, square firebox type boiler typical of early Style "A" and "B" Climaxes.
The builder's plate.
Shawnigan Lake Lumber 2 information board.
Truck Loggers Gallery, after which we went outside.
The railway features a diamond crossing.
Mayo Lumber 2 truck shay 3, ex. Kettle Valley Steam Railway 3 1995 to 2000, exx. display at Mayo's offices in Paldi 1952 to 1967, nee Mayo Lumber 3 built by Lima Locomotive Work in 1924.
The Mayo Lumber Company was formed in 1917 by a group of Sikhs from the Punjab region of India. Management rested with Mayo Singh and Kapoor Singh. Kapoor was the only shareholder who could speak English. Like Hillcrest Lumber, Mayo Lumber was known as being a good company to work for. Both companies had large numbers of Chinese, Japanese and East-Indian workers.
The company operated railway logging operations and sawmills at Paldi (originally Mayo) and at Kapoor. The Mayo Sawmill was on the E&N Cowichan Subdivision near the Hillcrest Lumber and McNeill and Munn sites. The Kapoor Lumber Company mill was on the Canadian National line at Sooke Lake, now part of the Greater Victoria Watershed. Shay 3 worked at Kapoor between 1928 and 1940. In 1942, Lake Logging bought the company’s Meade Creek timber holdings and Paldi sawmill was leased to Lake Logging to service the Paldi mill from 1942 until 1945, when a fire at Lake Logging's Rounds Camp destroyed 27 million board feet of felled and bucked timber, ending the surplus of logs that had been sent to Paldi for milling. Most of the Paldi employees then transferred to Lake Logging's large new mill at Honeymoon Bay. The steam engine was on display at Paldi until 1967, when Rajindi Mayo donated it to the Cowichan Valley Forest Museum, in memory of Pioneer Lumberman Mayo Singh.
In 1995, Number 3 was restored to operation by museum staff and volunteers for temporary loan to the Kettle Valley Railway Historical Society. The boiler was converted to burn fuel oil at that time, but the Radley-Hunter stack was left on for appearance sake. Number 3 was the first Shay in British Columbia to use superheated steam. It also featured an enclosed steel cab, cast trucks and a girder frame. What was not modern was its use of wood as a fuel. Mayo favoured wood because plenty of slab wood was available from his sawmills, labour was plentiful and cheap and the hauls were relatively short. On an average day, the boiler consumed approximately eight cords of wood.
James Island four wheel gas mechanical 3, nee James Island 3, built by Vulcan in 1937.
Eight-wheel logging crew trailer 89 "Cowichan" built by British Columbia Electric Railway and Westminster Iron Works.
British Columbia Forest Products 80-DE-7B 9 built by Whitcomb in 1943. Built for American military service in World War II, it is believed to have been intended for duty in North Africa but was not sent due to early victory in that campaign. Most American military locomotives sent overseas were coal-fired, except for those intended for North Africa or Italy, where coal was not readily available.
Number 9 worked at the US Navy's Fleet and Industrial Supply Center in Oakland, California. Declared surplus, the locomotive was stored at Oxnard where it was purchased by British Columbia Forest Products in 1956 from Pan-American Engineering Company of Dallas, Texas. Used at their Crofton Pulp Mill, the Number 9 (a larger-than-normal mill switcher) was required due to the steep grade between the deep-sea dock and the mill.
It served the mill until increased production and heavier freight cars required more power and it was placed on standby service in 1985. In 1989, it was donated to the BC Forest Museum. The original Buda engines were replaced with Cummins L1-600s, which were in turn replaced by Caterpillar 353s. Number 9 is significant in that it represents the change from steam to diesel power in British Columbia's pulp and paper industry railways.
Eight wheel logging crew trailer 21A.
Maintenance-of-way four wheel flat car carrying ties.
An empty ore car.
An ore car with coal inside.
An ore car with more coal.
The engine shed.
Old smoke stacks.
A four-wheel frame.
Museum scene. There are several small buildings on the museum grounds that show logging camp life and explain how logging was performed over the decades.
A steam train on a trestle carrying workers to their jobs.
Logging locomotives.
Old Betsy, a Climax locomotive use by Shawnigan Lake Lumber.
Two diorama scenes of logging. We returned to the gift shop and I bought a T-shirt and took it out to the car before starting the line for the 11:00 train.
Alderlea station, from where the train originates.
Cowichan Valley Railroad open air car. We boarded the train and sat in the rear open air car.
The fire tower that I climbed later, a replica built in 1967 for the Pacific National Exhibition and is similar to more than 100 lookout towers that were used to spot forest fires in the Province.
Tank Car 11.
Cowichan Valley Railroad 10.
A former British Columbia Hydro Railway flat car.
A side-dump gondola car.
At 11:00 AM, the train departed the station and I caught the engine on the first curve.
The Ranger Station.
The locomotive on the second curve.
A rear view of the Ranger Station.
Rounding the third curve.
A piece of machinery for moving large logs.
The locomotives we had already photographed and the engine shed.
The Logging Camp.
Crossing the diamond.
The locomotive shop.
The engine pulling our train.
A railroad steam crane built by Osgoode Washington.
We started crossing Somenos Lake.
Somenos Lake, part of the Somenos Conservation Area which began life in 1988 as the Somenos Marsh Wildlife Refuge before becoming the Somenos Marsh Conservation Area in 2000. The SCA encompasses 200 hectares of diverse and sensitive ecosystems, including Somenos Lake and associated wetlands, Bings Creek, Averill Creek, Richards Creek, Somenos Creek, agricultural lands, Garry Oak woodlands and meadows containing three federally listed endangered plants, Ye'yumnuts ancient cultural site and the Somenos Marsh Open Air Classroom off the S'amunu (dike) Trail.The SCA is comprised of multiple parcels of land owned by the Province of British Columbia - Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations; Municipality of North Cowichan; Nature Trust of BC; Ducks Unlimited Canada and the BC Forest Discovery Centre. Somenos Lake is considered part of the Conservation Area with the lake bottom owned by Ducks Unlimited. Somenos Marsh was the first Important Bird and Biodiversity Area recognized in BC by Bird Life International in 2001 due to its large over-wintering population of Trumpeter Swans and special sub-species of Great Blue Heron. The importance of the SCA’s habitat, was recognized in 2018, when all the crown lands were designated as the S'amunu Wildlife Management Area.
Lake Cowichan Railway water tower.
Cowichan Valley Railway 36" gauge DLC-66 26 "Green Hornet", ex. Nelson Machinery Company 1970, nee British Columbia Electric Railway 3 built by Plymouth Locomotive Works in 1928. The BCER used it in Victoria and after 1940, at Jordan River. The BCER, now BC Hydro, built a narrow gauge railway in 1909 to construct the dam and transmission lines of its Jordan River hydroelectric power plant. Until 1970, six miles of railway was operated to access and service the dam site.
The museum purchased the locomotive in 1970 from the Nelson Machinery Company of North Vancouver, with funds donated by the late Timothy Eaton of Eatons Canada, as a good, reliable backup to the steam locomotives. Named the "Green Hornet" by railway staff, 26 serves as the railway's work engine and alternate passenger train engine.
Next we went inside the Wellburn Building which houses a model railroad. The log cabin building was built in 1964-1965 with funds and materials donated by forest industry magnate H.R. MacMillan and was originally called the "Log Museum" featuring the first exhibits of the collection at the Forest Museum.
The model railroad in the Elburn Building.
A hand car on display. We returned outside and walked down the trail to Somenos Lake so we could catch the train as it crossed it.
The scene of our photo runby.
Photo runby of our train crossing Somenos Lake. We returned to the Cowichan Station and boarded.
Three views on the way back to Alderlea Station.
Cowichan Valley Railway Locomotive DLC6 23 "Sandy. I then climbed the fire lookout for some great views.
The train from the fire tower.
The engine from my elevated vantage point.
The train started its next lap around the property. I climbed down, met Elizabeth who had photographed it from the ground and we prepared to leave this great museum.
The Cat and the Hat on one of the buildings on our way out. I thanked the young lady in the gift shop and told her that we had enjoyed our visit.
The steam engine is diminutive compared to the pole.
We departed Duncan and Elizabeth drove us to Highway 18 to Lake Cowichan.
Comox Logging and Railway 2 truck shay 12, ex. Ladysmith Railway Historical Society 1993, exx. Display at Ladysmith Museum 1987, exxx. Comox Logging Railway 12 1962, exxxx. Merrill and Ring Lumber 2 1942, nee Squamish Timber 2, built by Lima Locomotive Works in 1927.
Comox Logging and Railway 12 information card.
Crown Forest Industries steel construction logging car 94-83, ex. Ladysmith Railway Historical Association, exx. Crown Forest Industries, exxx. Crown Zellerbach, nee Chicago St. Paul and Milwaukee Road 598306, builder and year unknown.
Crown Forest Industries Logging car 94-83 information card.
Canadian National outside-braced wooden box car 428560 built by Canadian Car and Foundry in 1923.
Canadian National 428560 information card.
Canadian National caboose 78876, ex. Canadian National box car 409679, nee Canadian National 831156, built by the railway in 1952.
Canadian National caboose 78876 information card.
Canadian Pacific Lake Cowichan station built in 1913. By the turn of the century, rail development in the form of the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway had largely ended, however, as the forest industry began to appear lucrative, expansion efforts were made to add additional lines inward to better reach the communities near these resources. By 1912, the E&N Railway had arrived at Lake Cowichan, with the Canadian Northern Railway company arriving in 1913 with a line on the opposite side of the lake (later to be bought and finished by Canadian National).
Western Forest Industries WLC-3 7, ex. BC Forest Discovery Centre 2001, exx. Ladysmith Railway Historical Society 1996, exxx. West Can Terminals 7 1987, exxxx. West Can Terminals Victoria 40. exxxxx. Western Forest Industries 40 1978, exxxxxx. Western Forest Industries 7 1973, exxxxxxx. Kelley Logging 7 1956, exxxxxxxx. O'Brien Logging (Stillwater) 7 1948, nee Merrill and Ring Lumber 8, built by Plymouth in 1929.
The Gerry Burch Working Forest sign.
Another eight-man logging transport car.
Cummins diesel engine.
Railway Baggage/Mail cart. We then went inside the museum.
The interior of the Kaatza Station Museum. The Kaatza Historical Society was established in 1975 with the goal of preserving and cataloguing the history of Lake Cowichan and the surrounding area. The Museum and Archives currently occupy the restored building previously used as the CP train station. The museum contains a variety of exhibits dedicated to the history of Lake Cowichan and the forestry industry that has been a significant part of the region's development. In addition, the museum archives contains records and other items pertaining to the history of the Wood Working Union and its local chapters.
A Century of Logging and Cowichan Lake Logging Railways 1930's to 1940's.
The caboose and train set. We said goodbye to the museum caretaker and drove back to Highway 1 and north to Chemainus.
MacMillan Bloedel flat cars no date or history.
MacMillan Bloedel 2-6-2 1044, ex. MacMillan and Bloedel 1044 1970, exx. Victoria Lumber and Manufacturing 44 1952, exxx. Victoria Lumber and Manufacturing 4, exxxx. Timberland Development Company 4 1929, nee Vancouver Machinery Depot Dealer, built by H.K. Porter in 1924.
Gerry Smith Park historical board. We continued north to Ladysmith where the Ladysmith Railway Historical Society has some outside displays due to its importance in the logging and coal industry that were once staples of Vancouver Island.
LadysmithLadysmith owes its founding to the coal industry and James Dunsmuir, eldest son of coal baron, Robert Dunsmuir.
When coal was first discovered on Vancouver Island, a most unlikely company exploited the commodity. We all think about fur trading when we hear of the Hudson’s Bay Company but it was in fact this company who first recognized the importance of the coal. Miners were at first hired mainly from Great Britain to work and manage the mines. One of these individuals was a young Scottish fellow named Robert Dunsmuir who actually got to Vancouver Island by accident as it was his cousin who was originally hired. He would go on to become one of the richest men in Canada.
Wellington – Dunsmuir's First Coal MineAdding to his empire, he established coal mines in the Comox area further north and built the E&N Railway Company for which he obtained the huge land grant known as the Railway Belt from the government.
Robert Dunsmuir passed away in 1889 leaving the running of his Wellington Coal mines to his two sons, James and Alexander. By the mid 1890’s the pits at Wellington were beginning to run out. An individual by the name of Ephraim Hodgson discovered a seam of coal on the southern slope of Mount Benson seven miles to the south west of Nanaimo. This turned out to be an extension of the Wellington seam and as it was within the railway belt, Hodgson approached James Dunsmuir about his discovery.
The Wellington Coal Company began developing the new mine which was called Extension because it was an extension of the coal seam at Wellington. The intention was to ship the coal through the existing wharves, but Dunsmuir had previously had a dispute with the Western Fuel Company, over whose land the railway would have to go, and access was denied.
Oyster HarbourDunsmuir decided that Oyster Harbour would be the shipping port, and in 1898, construction of a railway extension to Oyster Harbour began, together with building a coal washer (slack from which forms Slack Point), bunkers and wharves. Miners started moving from Wellington to Extension, but Dunsmuir said he did not want them to live near the mine, but to move to Oyster Harbour. While some did remain, most did move, bringing homes, shops, hotels and churches with them. They were loaded onto rail flat cars, brought to Oyster Harbour and re-assembled.
Meanwhile, back in South AfricaDuring all this activity, the Boer War in South Africa was being waged with the town of Ladysmith, South Africa, being besieged for 118 days. It was in 1900 that Dunsmuir heard of the relief of Ladysmith and renamed his instant town on Oyster Harbour Ladysmith in honour of the event (ten streets are named after generals of that war). The population now about 1,000 continued to grow and the town prospered, largely due to ships’ crews looking for provisions and entertainment. Trains carried miners to Extension and brought coal back.
The Early 1900'sAbout 1898, copper was found on Mount Sicker some 14 miles to the south. Ore was brought via the E&N to the smelter at Ladysmith, which was up and running in 1902. However, this only lasted until 1912.
Over the next few years the population rose to almost 5,000, but miners began a strike which lasted over a year; it was a bitter one with much damage to machinery and houses, and much animosity between strikers and non-strikers. Many people left to look for better opportunities. The strike was eventually settled but the wounds remained.
The 1930’sIn the 1930’s the demand for coal was falling off, partly due to coal being replaced by fuel oil in ships, and because of the general countrywide depression. These issues and the fact that the Extension seam was running out, caused the closure of the mine in 1931. Ladysmith fell into it’s own depression. People left town and the houses defaulted to the city for unpaid taxes.
In 1933, a violent windstorm blew down thousands of trees in the hills behind Ladysmith. The forest at that time was owned by the Rockefeller Foundation who refused to sell. The windstorm convinced them to sell the forest. Three years later the Comox Logging and Railway Company started logging and shipping logs through the harbour. Instead of digging coal, now we cut trees. This was Ladysmith’s mainstay until about 1986. Today, there are still two sawmills. Logs are exported through the harbour to sawmills and ships all over the west coast.
Flat car of unknown origin, builder or year.
Ladysmith Railway Historical wooden box car 403979, ex. Canadian National 516089, nee Canadian National 424112, built by Canadian Car and Foundry in 1920.
Canadian Pacific Railway spreader 402819, nee Esquimalt and Nanaimo 28, built by F. H. Hopkins in 1946.
Oregon Pacific and Eastern log car 167, nee Ladysmith Industrial Heritage Museum 94-76, builder and year unknown.
Comox Logging Railway log unloader, ex. Crown Forest Industries Humdirgen 1986, 2 truck Shay 13 in 1947, exx. Merrill Ring Wilson 12 1942, exxx. Moore Logging Number 3 1942, exxxx. Grant Smith and McDonnell, nee Newport Timber 1 1917, built by Lima Locomotive Works in 1910.
A trackmobile.
Canadian Pacific Ladysmith station built in 1944 to replace an earlier and more elaborate station that burnt down. It was a stop on the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway from the steam era through 2011, when the E&N Dayliner service ceased operations.
Elizabeth then drove us to Nanaimo and Southern Railway of BC's Wellcox Yard (formerly Rail America, E&N Railfreight and originally Canadian Pacific) and we found the only train on the Island.
Southern Railway of British Columbia GP9 128, ex. Canadian Pacific 1583 2011, nee Canadian Pacific 8671, built by Electro-Motive Division in 1957; and GP9 108, ex. Intercoastal Leasing 1627 2014, exx. Canadian Pacific 1627, nee Canadian Pacific 8813 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1958.
Offices of the Southern Railway of British Columbia.
The Seaspan barge slip where all rail traffic to and from the Island is served from Tilbury in Delta. Elizabeth then drove us to the Canadian Pacific station.
Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway's Nanaimo station built in 1929. It is significant because of its association with the British Columbia confederation controversy. The railway was completed as a "consolation prize" from the federal government after it broke its promise to make Victoria the western terminus of the transcontinental railway. This breach led to threats of British Columbia's secession from Canada. Further controversy was fuelled when money and land for the railway were given to Nanaimo coal baron Robert Dunsmuir, already one of the province's richest men. In 1886, the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway opened with the local station being built at this site.
During the 1880's, the completion of the railway and the simultaneous expansion of the huge No. 1 Coal Mine precipitated an economic boom that almost doubled Nanaimo's population and created a consequent demand for more housing and commercial services. The Station represents the commercial and residential development of a hitherto undeveloped area as a direct result of the siting of the station on Selby Street.
Built by the Canadian Pacific Railway Company in 1920, the Nanaimo Station, which replaced the earlier building, exemplifies the form of station built in mid-sized communities across Canada in the early 20th century and can be seen as an early example of corporate branding that visually tied Nanaimo to the rest of the CPR empire. The Nanaimo station appears to be a more elaborate version of CPR Standard Plan No. 9., a "combination station" that included living quarters and commercial space. The station's most distinctive feature is its central square tower. In addition to providing an attractive visual element, the tower's projecting bay served a useful function by giving an unobstructed view of the track. Although there have been some changes to the building over time, it remains substantially intact and continues to serve its original function.
The Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway Station has been in continuous use since 1920 and continues to provide transportation service to Vancouver Island. This historic structure was designated a Municipal Heritage Site on December 19, 1977.
After the photographing the station, we went inside the building which is now White Rabbit Coffee Company and Elizabeth had a surprise for me, my very first Nanaimo Bar, which was excellent. We subsequently purchased more later on in our trip.
We drove next to Parkville and another station.
Parksville Canadian Pacific station built in 1910 to service steam trains running between Nanaimo and Port Alberni. The station was originally called McBride Junction, named after Premier McBride. Due to confusion with freight between McBride Junction and McBride in northeast British Columbia, the name was changed to Parksville.
Though the train station is still in use, the water tower was slated for demolition in the spring of 1996. Deemed by the community as a significant part of the local area's history, The Vancouver Island Water Tower Preservation Society was formed to save the tower from the wrecking ball. The E&N Railway Company agreed to transfer ownership of the historic water tower to this group for restoration. It is the only railway water tower on the Island in its original state and is one of four remaining in the province. The tower is unique in its design as it has no outer shell to protect the water from freezing.
The Society's plan was to move the tower from its previous location south of the station to a secure location where restoration would take place. Once the restoration was complete, by the summer of 1997, the Society wanted to see the Water Tower placed between the Train Station and the Alberni Highway. Such placement would keep it historically correct near railway property and be a landmark entrance for the City of Parksville. The Tower became the entrance to the City from the new Inland Island Highway 19 and Alberni Highway 4A.
In November 2020, Parksville city council approved the donation of the water tower to the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Division of the Canadian Railroad Historical Association (E&N Division CRHA). Council also approved the donation of $35,000 to assist with some minor restoration of the tower 25 years on from its original restoration in 1997. In 2019 the city investigated the condition of the tower and an engineering firm was hired to assess the structure. The water tank and tower were found to be in poor condition and intervention was required to reinstate structural stability and slow the ongoing deterioration.
The cost to demolish the tower was estimated to be $35,600; the cost to remediate in place was $273,000; and to deconstruct, move and rehabilitate the tower was estimated to be $321,000. The city recognizes that the water tower has been a landmark on the Alberni Highway for years and is pleased to have the E&N Division as its new caretaker.
For a short time, the station was called McBride Junction after Premier Richard McBride from 1903 to 1915, but according to Mr. Stanhope, who at the time was the manager of the local co-op store situated where Buckerfields is now (across the street), supplies intended for Parksville kept going astray and were ultimately traced to a town named McBride in the Rocky Mountain Trench. As a result, the station was renamed Parksville.
The station was leased to the City of Parksville by CP Rail but it is now owned by the Island Corridor Foundation which manages the Island Rail Corridor lands and its structures. The ICF currently leases the station to the Arrowsmith Potters Guild who have been the tenants since 1995. The building is maintained by the Potters.
The Parksville water tower. After a full day of railroading on the Island, Elizabeth drove us out to Port Alberni where we checked into the Best Western Barclay Inn after having dinner at A&W. Similar to Subway, where the Canadian menu is slightly different than the American one, A&W in Canada offers a Mozza Burger, which is Elizabeth's favourite and she had not had one since 2019.
However, our day was not over as we had an appointment at 7:00 PM.
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