The Past
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Geography
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Industries
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Transportation
~ Bridges
~ Canals
~ Paddlewheelers
~ Roads
~ Trains
~ ~ Shuswap Okanagan Railway
~ ~ Construction
of Railway
~ ~ Railway
Station
~ ~ 1st Rolling
Stock
~ ~ Growth from
Railway
~ ~ Memories of the trains
As all proud Canadians know, the
Canadian Pacific Railway was completed in 1885 and the country was united by a set of
tracks from sea to sea. On 1886, the Shuswap and Okanagan Railway Company was incorporated
by the Dominion Government. being intended to supplement the CPR and link the valley to
the rest of the country. After much debate, speculation, and revision of terms the railway
was begun in 1890. By 1892, the railway stretched 51.3 miles from Sicamous to Okanagan
Lake, with an adjoining paddlewheeler service to Penticton provided by the S.S. Aberdeen.
Initially, the only rail service was not a train, but a steel driven handear known as "the Kalamazoo". It was not, however, extremely dependable and was only used for several months in the summer of 1891. Next, actual trains were used. The first freight train reached Vernon in September of 1891 and the first passenger train in October. It had Lord and Lady Aberdeen as passengers.
As Lady Aberdeen said: 'The train consisted of the engine, our car, two luggage trunks covered with a miscellaneous assemblage of men, dogs. packages, trucks, agricultural machinery and so forth, and a .caboose' which I think I am right in describing, subject to A's correction, as a sort of a glorified guard's van."
After the initial excitement, the "Jerk-Water service", as H.M. Walker of the The Edenograph called it, began. This form of service continued for about fifteen years. The passenger trains ran south on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and North on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. It was not very dependable, but very friendly. This friendliness, such as stopping to pick up anyone who flagged the train, largely caused the lack of dependability.
By 1905, however, business and passenger service had swelled to warrant daily passenger service all year round, in addition to the freight trains which were largely scheduled by the seasons. such as harvest and fruit crop times. From this time until the 1940's the Railway Companies boomed with the rest of the industrial world. The biggest commodities were poles, lumber, bricks. fruit, grain and cattle. Passenger service remained busy, and the railway also accommodated many unscheduled trains, such as for hockey trips and holiday celebrations.
The 1950's were the beginning of the end. In the late 50's, the passenger service ground to a standstill. This was largely caused by the advent of the personal automobile. In the early 60's, with the growing use of trucking, the stockyard in Enderby went; it was followed by the sawmill in the mid 70's. By the 80's, the train station was gone and regular freight service to Enderby was stopped. Such was the rise and fall of the Shuswap Okanagan Railway Company. in its day, it brought growth and life to Enderby.
Robert Henry
ALF School 1989