Rails Across the Prairies

Canada's rail lines were pivotal in establishing the icons that mark today's landscape: massive bridges, sentinel-like grain elevators, pattern-book wayside stations. Odd and unusual place names dot the lines, while countless ghost towns and stories abound like the "ghost train" of St. Louis and the tunnels of Moose Jaw.

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Follow the evolution of the rail legacy of the Canadian Prairies from the arrival of the first engine on a barge to today’s realities.



Rails Across the Prairies traces the evolution of Canada’s rail network, including the appearance of the first steam engine on the back of a barge. The book looks at the arrival of European settlers before the railway and examines how they coped by using ferry services on the Assiniboine and North Saskatchewan Rivers. The work then follows the building of the railways, the rivalries of their owners, and the unusual irrigation works of Canadian Pacific Railway. The towns were nearly all the creation of the railways from their layout to their often unusual names.

Eventually, the rail lines declined, though many are experiencing a limited revival. Learn what the heritage lover can still see of the Prairies’ railway legacy, including existing rail operations and the stories the railways brought with them. Many landmarks lie vacant, including ghost towns and elevators, while many others survive as museums or interpretative sites.