Grand Trunk Pacific Railroad

Grand Trunk Pacific Railway BC Archives B-01477

A railway connecting the wheatfields of central Canada with a port on the West Coast was the dream of Charles Melville Hayes, founder of Prince Rupert.  Hayes did not see his dream materialize as he died on the Titanic in 1912.  The line started near Carberry, Manitoba.  Prince Rupert’s seaport is 500 miles closer to Asia than any other rail terminal.  Originally, they envisioned a line along Work Channel turning north near Tyee or Hayesport to Port Simpson.  This was vetoed because of a dispute over the Alaska boundary.  Therefore Sir Wilfred Laurier requested a site further south.  Another change requested by Richard McBride, premier of BC, was that the line pass through Hazelton instead of following the Telkwa River and crossing to the headwaters of the Copper River.  This increased the route by 80 miles.  There was also a proposed Omenica Railway from Copper River to Kitimat.  The 184 miles of track between Prince Rupert and Hazelton took nearly 6 years to complete.  The first train arrived in Prince Rupert on April 9, 1914.  The GTP was absorbed by the CNR October 4, 1922.