The Beginning of the Kettle Valley Railway

The idea for the Kettle Valley Railway was born at the turn of the 20 th century. There were rich silver and copper mines in the Kootenays. But there was no Canadian railway to carry the ore to a port on the West Coast where it could be shipped to markets around the world. Instead, ambitious American railway owners quickly built spur lines up from Washington. They took advantage of the profits to be made. Sir Thomas Shaughnessy, the president of the Canadian Pacific Railway (often called the CPR), fought for an all-Canadian rail line on all-Canadian territory. In 1910, Shaughnessy convinced British Columbia Premier Richard McBride to support his plan to build a rail line in the southern interior that would link up with existing CPR train track in the Kootenays and Merritt. Later, an extension would continue the line through the Coquihalla Canyon to Hope. The government agreed to give $5,000 per mile ($3,100 per kilometre) to build the line but said that the CPR must finish the work in four years. Shaughnessy also had one final command. The KVR must be first class in every way. That was a tall order. But it would be filled, thanks to one man: Andrew McCulloch.