Canada, by Train, of Library and Archives Canada, provides a short history of railways in Canada. The Canadian Encyclopedia online [www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=HomePage&Params=A1] provides useful information about the history of railways in Canada. It includes online articles about Canadian National Railway Company, Grand Trunk Railway of Canada, Canadian Pacific Railway, Intercolonial Railway and others.

Research at Library and Archives Canada

Library and Archives Canada holds the records of Canadian National Railway Company and other affiliated railway companies that operated in Canada (Record Group 30). Please note that Canadian National Railway Company did not retain old personnel files of employees.

Some references relating to staff pay lists and registers can be found in the Government of Canada Files database. There are also some miscellaneous files relating to railway employees within the records of other governmentdepartments.

Keywords: surname or keywords (with wildcard) such as "Grand Trunk," "Intercolonial"

Important Note

In order for you to undertake a meaningful search, you must know the specific railroad company, the person's occupation and the period of service.
Labourers involved with the construction of a railroad were the employees of the contractor who built the railroad, not railway company employees.

Records relating to Canadian National employees in the western provinces (RG 30 W95-96/111, MIKAN 48203) are held in our regional office in Winnipeg. Only a 10% sample of the original files were retained. There are 75 volumes of files, arranged by personnel number. There is no index by name. The archivist cannot undertake searches in the collection unless you know the personnel number.

If you are in the Winnipeg area, you may consult the records yourself. An appointment is required. To make an appointment, please contact the following office:

Government Archives Division
Library and Archives Canada
1700 Inkster Boulevard
Winnipeg, MB
R2X 2T1
Tel.: 204-984-1469
Fax: 204-984 4074
reference.winnipeg@lac-bac.gc.ca

You can also hire a local researcher. For a list of researchers, contact the Manitoba Genealogical Society

Employees Provident Fund of the Intercolonial and Prince Edward Island Railway

Library and Archives Canada holds the records for the Employees Provident Fund of the Intercolonial and Prince Edward Island Railway established in 1907. The collection consists of 21,710 cards that are filed numerically by the employees' provident fund identification number. The cards have been digitized and are available online. The use of this digitized database is facilitated by a name index.

Employees Provident Fund of the Intercolonial and Prince Edward Island Railway

Research in Published Sources

Canadian Railway Records: A Guide for Genealogists, by Althea and J. Creighton Douglas and published by the Ontario Genealogical Society, provides comprehensive information about Canadian railroads, bibliographies, historical society addresses and more. The book includes a detailed outline of the records held at Library and Archives Canada relating to railway employees.

Research in Other Institutions

Canadian Pacific Railway Company (CPR) has not transferred records to Library and Archives Canada. The CPR does not allow access to its personnel records; however, if you have a question concerning the history and operation ofthe company, please consult the Canadian Pacific Railway Archives [www.cprheritage.com/].

Research Online

Canadian Railway agent, operator, dispatcher genealogical index [www.trainweb.org/telegraphgene/index.html]