VIEW-1682 | Rogers Pass and Mount Carroll on the C.P.R., BC, 1887
Rogers Pass and Mount Carroll on the C.P.R., BC, 1887
William McFarlane Notman
1887, 19th century
Silver salts, frosting on glass - Gelatin dry plate process
20 x 25 cm
Purchase from Associated Screen News Ltd.
VIEW-1682
© McCord Museum
Description
Keywords: Landscape (2230) , mountain (585) , Photograph (77678) , Train (185) , Transportation (2517)
Keys to History
The search for a route for the CPR through the Rocky Mountains was very difficult. Several were found, but one was too far north and another too close to the United States. The problem was solved in 1881-82, when the Rogers Pass was discovered by Major A.B. Rogers. At 1,330 m, it was the highest point on the transcontinental line. Over the years, 250 people, mostly railway workers, were killed by avalanches in the pass, until in 1916 the CPR built the 8 km long Connaught Tunnel through the mountain and abandoned the pass. In 1962 the Trans-Canada Highway was completed through the Rogers Pass. It is still a difficult drive in the winter, with avalanches often a danger.
Source : Forging the National Dream [Web tour], by William R. Morrison, University of Northern British Columbia (see Links)
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What
The debris of railway construction mars this scenic mountain view.
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Where
The place is Rogers Pass, in the British Columbia Rockies.
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When
The picture was taken in 1887, two years after the line was finished.
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Who
Thousands of workers, many of them Chinese, cleared the forest (note the large stump in the left foreground) and laid the tracks.
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