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John Harlow Letter The Letter below was written by Mr. R.A. Harlow and donated to the Railway and Forestry Museum by John Harlow. The original is now kept as part of the Railway and Forestry Museum Archival Collection #2002.1.30.3 at the Northern BC Archives, UNBC, Prince George.
Westle Transcript Hollis Transcript Charlie's Transcript
March 11, 1974 Selkirk Transcript To the Editor Prince Rupert Daily News Dear Sir: the recent publicity given the driving of the "last Spike" on the Canadian Pacific Railway brings back memories of another "Last Spike." I refer to the one on the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway, which gave Canada a second outlet to the Pacific Ocean. As a witness to, and one who took part in the event, I wish to recall some of the happenings on that day which are still fresh in my memory. First I would like to point out that several authors have misinformed their readers as to the date and location of this event. Russell Walker in his "Beans, Bacon and Brave Hearts" states that the connection was made as Isle de Pierre (33 miles west of Prince George) in February 1914. G.R. Stevens in his "History of the Canadian National Railway" states that the junction of the east and west sections of the Grand Trunk Pacific was made at Finmore (50 miles west of Prince George). Dr. R.G. Large in his "History of Prince Rupert" uises the date of April 5, 1914. The Rev. F.E.Runnalls in his "History of Prince http://www.pgrfm.bc.ca/livinglandscapes/harlow.html (1 of 3) [4/6/2011 3:18:17 PM]
Walker's Transcript Camozzi's Transcript John Harlow Letter
Prince George Railway & Forestry Museum - Living Landscapes
George" uses April 7, 1914, about one mile east of Fort Fraser. Rev. Runnalls' date and location are correct. I was there. Arrangements had been made the day before for the track-layer crews from the east and west to each lay a measured half-mile of track to the the predesignated point and at a given signal the two crews were to race to the finish line. My Engineering Party set the finish point stake and measured the required distance to the starting points. April 7, 1914 was a warm, sunny day. The official train brought E.J. Chamberlain, president of the Grand Trunk Railway System, and a number of guests including A.W.Smithers, chairman of the Grand Trunk Railway board of directors, and the high officers from both Montreal and Winnipeg. Also, from the west came a train bringing railway officers and many guests from from Prince Rupert. Included in this party were General Superintendent W.C. C. Mehan, Superintendent G.A. McNichol, Division Engineer C>C> Vanarsdol, Assistant Engineer W.H. Tobey. The two track-laying trains had been placed at their respective starting points early that morning and at the appointed time, the race was on. I don't remember the length of time it took the crews to reach the point of completion, but it was very fast work. The east end crew won by a few minutes and there was some delay while short rails to close the final gap were cut and fastened into place. The west end crew cut and placed the last rail and President Chamberlain drove the last spike. It was a standard black iron spike. This having been done Mr. Chamberlain presented a gold watch, suitably engraved, to each of the two men in charge of the track-laying. At this point I came into the picture and with a small can of white paint and a brush I inscribed the following on the flange of the 11-foot last rail: Point of Completion April 7th, 1914. That piece of rail was later taken up, shipped to Winnipeg and sliced into quarter-inch-thick pieces which were polished, suitably engraved and distributed among railway officers as paper-weights. [Curator's note: We have one of these in our collection at the museum] Following the ceremony the work trains were moved clear of the main line and the president's train headed for Prince Rupert, arriving on April 8, 1914. Regular passenger train service started in June 1914 and Canada had a coast-tocoast railway through the lowest mountain pass with lowest gradient and flatest curves on the North American continent. April 7th of this year (1974) will be the 60th anniversary of the event at Fort Fraser and the 64th anniversary of my arrival at Prince Rupert. I may have said nothing new but after 40 years on construction and maintenance of the line I http://www.pgrfm.bc.ca/livinglandscapes/harlow.html (2 of 3) [4/6/2011 3:18:17 PM]
Prince George Railway & Forestry Museum - Living Landscapes
feel that this is a part of our history that should be frequently recalled. Yours truly, R.A. Harlow (A couple of paragraphs were omitted from the original letter when it was retyped as they had nothing to do with the actual driving of the Last Spike narrative ...John Harlow)
850 River Road | Prince George, BC | V2L 5S8 | Phone: (250) 563-7351 | Fax: (250) 563-3697 Webhosting provided by Mag-Net Internet | Supported by the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George Last updated: September 2004 (AD)
http://www.pgrfm.bc.ca/livinglandscapes/harlow.html (3 of 3) [4/6/2011 3:18:17 PM]
