THE CANADIAN ROCKIES: A HISTORY 爪 PHOTOGRAPHS 5 RAILS INTO THE WILD Opposite: CPR train alongside the Kicking Horse River, n. d. Native peoples were the firstto see the Canadian Rockies. There is evidence to indicate they traveled, hunted and lived here at least II , 000 years ago. By contrast, the 、 vhite man s history in the Rockies began in 1754 , when 丘江 trader Anthony Henday glimpsed the eastern wall ofwhat he called "The Shining Mountains", om near lnnisfail, Alberta. The fur traders eventually established a handful of arduous routes across the Rockies, and a fe 、 notable scientlsts, adventurers, misslonaries and explorers added to the knowledge of the land with their travels during the early and mid 1800 ' s. But lt 、 the contact bet 、 and mountains during constructlon of the Canadian Pacific Ra11way in the 1880 ' s , which brought the Rockies into the limelight. ln the space Of less than a decade the rail 、 transformed the mountaln- ous wilds ofwestern Canada 伝 om a virtual blank on the map, tO a world famous destinatlon. Canada was only four years 01d when the idea of a trans- continental railway was first proposed As part of the dealto lure the resource-rich territory 0f British columbia into the country in 1871, Prime Minister John A. Macdonald promised a railway link tO the eastern provinces. The same summer, survey crews 、 dispatched tO begin locating a line for the rails across the vast breadth and unkno 、 terram Of central and 、 vestern canada•, surely one 0f the most formidable surveyrng pro)ects ever undertaken. From proposalto completion, the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), as it officially became known, required more than fourteen years. ln the end it Ⅱ to a syndicate of 、 vealthy businessmen tO finance and re-finance the venture. The actual constructlon occupied four and a half years, and required the efforts 。朝 0 , 000 workers. The scandal, debate and financial strain of the troubled enterprise brought the young country to the political and financial edge numerous tlmes. Notthe least of the challenges to be met in the final survey and construction Of the railway, 、 the first Of six great mountam ranges 、 rose as impenetrable barriers tO westward travel into British Columbia, and the dream of umting Canada by rail ー the Canadian Rockies. Thus, our pictorial history of the Rockies begins in 1882 , as the end of railway steel approached the apparent chaos of peaks, valleys, lakes and glaciers, across which the existence of a viable route for the railway had メ e い 0 be proven.

第ュ THE CANADIAN ROCKIES: A HISTORY 爪 PHOTOGRAPHS 13 Operat10n Of the CPR on the ユ 11C first constructlon The problems posed by treachero us B ig Hill near traln tO attempt descent Of Van Horne s temporary Field, proved a costly and the Big Hill, ran away and solution were finally dangero us undertaking. plunged into the canyon, rectified in 1909 with the killing three workers. A Runa 、 tralns can occur completion Of the ingenious on hills steeper than 1%. system of manual safety Spiral Tunnels. These 。 The rail 、ö,ray's contract with S 、 vitches 、 subsequently tunnels combine tO create a the federal government installed. Manned aro und figure eight deep within Mt. permitted a maxlmum grade the clock, these s 、 vitches O gden and Cathedral of 2.2 , yet the grade diverted runa 、 vay tralns ontO Mounta1n, adding nearly 7 surveyed on the Big Hill was spur lines. Tra1n SIZe and kilometres to the length of t 、 vice that. D espite the speed 、 vere restricted, but the line, and reducing the ObVious dangers, Horne still the runaways and overall grade tO 2.2 per cent. chose a temporary SO lu- wrecks occurred. Uphill T 、 M() years, 1000 men and tion and ran the rails trains fared little better. almost 700 , 000 kilograms of straight down the hill. He S omelocomouves exploded dynamlte 、 required in planned [ 0 rectify the under the stress. The steep the tunnels' cons tructlo n. problem when the CPR was grade required four 10C0m0 ー in a better financial position. t1Ves tO haul a 15 car tralll, and additional pusher" 10C01 れ Ot1Ves 、 sometlmes dispatched from Field to help trains stalled on the hill. を一を一 Opposite: CPR train in the po 「 t Of the lower Spiral Tunnel, n. d. Top: Open-air observation car at Lake Louise station, 1927.

10 THE CANADIAN ROCKIES: A HISTORY 爪 PHOTOGRAPHS skill, the dynamic Van The origin of the CPR s Cornelius Van Horne, appointed General Manager Horne iS best remembered mountaln hOtelS has a for his strong advocacy of ofthe CPR in 1881, and later stronger connectlon tO the national parks. lt was largely logiStiCS and economics 0 「 its Vice-President.With a successful rail 、 record in as a result of his lobbying railway operation, than any that Banff, Yoho and original desire tO establish a the US, Van Horne 、 Glacier national parks came business ln tourrsm. 0 save touted as "the ablest railway into being in 1885 and 1886. the expense of hauling heavy general in the world", and dining cars up and down the was broughtto Canada to Horne s name IS C01 れ - memorated in the range Of oversee the constructlo n and grades of Kicking Horse and mountams lmmediately 、 operatlon Of the CPR. Given Rogers passes, the CPR con- the huge debt incurred in of Field. structed Mt. Stephen House constructlon Of the rail 、 vay, at Field in 1886 , and stationed a dining car at Van Horne was always on the 100k0ut for 、 tO save Rogers Pass, replacing it with a building called and make mo ney in the Glacier House a year later. rall 、 vay S operations. ln this he 、 very ・ successful. Passengers could step 0 the train and dine in the heart When he saw the popularity of the dining Of a fantast1C mountaln stops, he quickly expanded landscape, which four years facilities tO allOW overnight earlier had been uninhab- accommodation. A fledgling ited, trackless bush. lt was railway, the CPR found itself an expenence in the in the hotel business as well. world of travel. Along with his business The dining facilities were acumen and managerial the brainchild of William

THE CANADIAN ROCKIES: A HISTORY PHOTOGRAPHS 71 PROFESSIONS AND PASTIMES Opposite: E Ⅲ 0 Barnes demonstrating hiS camera tO a Stoney Native at Kootenay Plains, 1907. Ever since the wife of Prime Minister John A. Macdonald rode on the cowcatcher Of a train 伝 0n1 Lake Louise tO Vancouver in the summer Of 1886 , the Rockies have seen an array of professions and pastimes ー everything from basic industry to madcap novelty. ln Banffs transltion 伝 01 れ frontier t0 、 t0 tourrsm centre, the pluck and perseverance Of the early surveyors, prospectors, loggers and railway builders, quickly gave way tO the savvy Of the marn street businessman. While most industrial enterprise in the Rockies faded into history, curtailed by economrcs, or prohibited by park regulations, tourism flourished. lt iS not surpr1Sing the most successful businessmen placed the tourist trade foremost amongst their diverse interests. Those 、 VhO rose tO the top in Banff— Dr. R. G. Brett, Jim Brewster and Norman Luxton ー all owned hotels. Luxton also founded the newspaper, どル′、 0 4 〃イ Ca 0 〃 , and was a key figure in 20 of Banffs oldest traditions: Banff lndian Days, and the Banff Winter CarnivaI. The lndian Days, during which Stoney Natives came tO Banff [ 0 entertain hOtel guests, reportedly origi- nated in 1889 when the CPR mainline flooded, stranding hundreds of idle patrons at the Banff Springs. The celebra- tion of Native culture was held annually until 1978 , and for many epitomized the mix Of 。、 west' and mountams, centralto the lure of the Rockies. Up untilthe first Winter Carnival in 1917, Banff had been a destination offering servlces ln summer only. The carnival 、 a gimmick in an ultimately successful attempt tO create 、 M1nter business ln Banff. Thelate 1920 s saw the beginning of another annual event, the Highland Gathering atthe Banff Springs Hotel. This celebratio n of traditional S cottish culture, became a popular, if some 、 vhat contrived, summertrme event. The Rockies' reputation for spectacular scenery allowed several photographers tO create prosperous businesses ln postcards and movies, bringing V1e 、 Of the mountalns tO the world. Most successful was Byron Harmon, who arrived in Banff in 19 丐 . Harmon is literally our prrncipal visual witness of Rockies' history. He was named official photogra- pher to the Alpine Club of Canada at its outset in 1906. By