Featuring :
Canadian Railway History
Canadian History and Geography
Old Technologies
... with a little humour.
Rolly Martin :
The classic Canadian Pacific Railway locomotive engineer and a friend.
Who am I and why do I do this ?
Please feel free to drop me a line:
sdgagnon@kos.net
Most Recent Updates:
August 2008 - An 1880 U.S. newspaper editorial on Macdonald's "White Elephant".
August 2008 - An 1880 U.S. newspaper editorial on Macdonald's "White Elephant".
July 2008 - An Act Respecting the Canadian Pacific Railway - Text from four original documents related to the CPR's construction.
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After the August 1 update, Rolly Martin Country will detour over CNR rails for a while.
I just can't figure it out !
For some ... reason ...
the photo above reminds me of a few particular hospital administrators I have known !
* * *
Below is an old postcard of Portage la Prairie, Manitoba.
Visiting (well OK ... camping on) relatives in Portage,
summer after summer, with numerous sidetrips
gave us a good appreciation of western Canadian history and railroading.
Grand Trunk Pacific and Canadian Northern boxcars seem to be neatly segregated on their own tracks
in this photo of a four railway town.
(U.S. Great Northern cars are on the far track. In the 1980s CN still talked about putting cars "in the Great Northern" yard).
In September, we'll explore how these two roads were integrated ...
and what that process tells us about The Young Dominion of Canada.
General groupings of quirky articles ...
Where Rolly Martin worked:
the fabled CPR mainline north of Lake Superior
CPR Lake Superior east end; Heron Bay Subdivision tour; photos and maps
CPR Lake Superior west end; Nipigon Subdivision tour; photos and maps
Schreiber, Ontario; White River, Ontario; railway town history and life
"See Canada by train!"
Various articles on passenger trains across Canada
Various articles on passenger trains across Canada
Canada by train - A quick westbound trip across Canada in 1979 on VIA/CNR'S "Super Continental"
Canada by train - An eastbound trip across Canada in 1979 on VIA/CPR's "The Canadian" Part 1 : Vancouver to Winnipeg
Canada by train - An eastbound trip across Canada in 1979 on VIA/CPR's "The Canadian" Part 2: Winnipeg to Montreal
The earliest passenger trains and later developments; Canadian Pacific's transcontinental train expertise
Early Canadian passenger trains, CPR Lake Superior; interior photographs; dining cars
Canadian aviation - early history; streamlined passenger trains; Zephyrs and "The Canadian"
Canadian Pacific Railway's "The Canadian" passenger train; rolling stock interior diagrams and illustrations (1950s); Park cars and Canadian artists
How steam and diesel locomotives work.
How railway shops kept rolling stock, um ... rolling.
How railway shops kept rolling stock, um ... rolling.
Steam locomotive introduction; coal burning characteristics; steam and diesel locomotive contrasts
Diesel locomotive introduction; CP Rail SD40-2
Delorimier Shops - of the CPR and railway rolling stock 1850-1900
Angus Shops - of the CPR, steam locomotive maintenance 1900-1960
Dangerous Hardcore Canadian Railway History!
Early legislation! Operating rules!!
Naughty partisan politics!!!
!! Exposed !!
and some unique characteristics of trains
Early legislation! Operating rules!!
Naughty partisan politics!!!
!! Exposed !!
A Canadian Rulebook from 1876 - The Intercolonial Railway in 1874, Sandford Fleming ... and ... the many definitions of "standard time".
Pacific Railroads - What was the Government of Canada thinking ... and risking ... when it negotiated the CPR contract? A continental perspective.
Railway systems ... ancient and modern Pacific Railroads - What was the Government of Canada thinking ... and risking ... when it negotiated the CPR contract? A continental perspective.
and some unique characteristics of trains
Railway surveying, northern Ontario; JHE Secretan's account; historical procedures and instruments
Railway use of capital markets; basic security types; Canadian Northern Railway debt; government guaranteed securities
Railway traffic control evolution; timetable, rulebook & train orders; rights of trains; kerosene lanterns
Train momentum; steel wheels, steel rails.
Train dynamics; old switching procedures on CPR north of Lake Superior
Railway crew members; conductors & trainmen; responsibilities ... "back when I worked".
Newfoundland ?!
Some hi-lites of Newfoundland's history
and what the Legendary Newfoundland Railway contributed.
Some hi-lites of Newfoundland's history
and what the Legendary Newfoundland Railway contributed.
Newfoundland One; location & geography; plain bearings and hotboxes; narrow gauge advantages for Newfoundland Railway
Newfoundland Two; cod fishery history and techniques; Sandford Fleming in Newfoundland; coastal ferries
Newfoundland Three; historical politics; early railway construction & maps; (RG) Reid Newfoundland Company; political timeline; St. John's terminal
Newfoundland Four; Newfoundland Railway land grants & forest resource development; hydro-electricity; Corner Brook region growth, photographs, maps
Newfoundland Five; Newfoundland Railway snow fighting equipment; steam rotary snowplow; Gaff Topsail
Newfoundland Six; World War 2 and the Newfoundland Railway; Gander and RAF Ferry Command
Railways in use ON the farm ... and how to make hay
Railways on the farm - A Canadian monorail that worked !
Making Hay on a Dairy Farm - Hay making circa 1900 and in recent years. Cattle digestive system (yes, really!). Historic feeding regimens and crop rotation. Be ready for the hay ... read this !
Warfare: technology and evolution in Canadian history
Warfare; comparison of Battle of the Plains of Abraham with World War 1; technology & tactics of industrialized warfare
| End of steel |