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ARCHIVED - Canada, by Train

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Immigration

Travelogue

To entice Europeans, Americans and even other Canadians to settle Canada's west, the government began a mass campaign of publications and lectures. Brochures and books were produced in various languages and distributed abroad. Government promoters held rallies and travelling exhibits heralded the advantages and opportunities of living in Canada's west. Plots of land were granted to those who signed up. It worked. During the major wave of immigration, roughly between 1896 and 1914, over three million people came to Canada.

Title page of brochure of the Canadian Pacific Railway, c. 1890, in German

Last page from brochure of the Canadian Pacific Railway, c. 1890, in German

Source

Canadian Pacific Railway, c. 1890, title page and last page

Video

Excerpt of a silent film showing Ukrainian immigrants about to embark on a train, 1921
(running time: 25s)

[RM 836 KB] Download Freeware

Source

Travelogue

How were they to travel west? Via the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), because it was the country's only transcontinental line. The CPR was well equipped for the task because it too had waged immigrant recruitment campaigns, similarly praising Canada's west. New settlers were relegated to "colonist cars", for their trip.