Overview
During the official ceremony on September 11, 1905 at Fort William, Ontario, Laurier turned the first sod for the construction of the GTPR, but the actual first sod had occurred the previous month about 12 mi south of Carberry, Manitoba. From Fort William, the GTPR built a 190 mi section of track connecting with the NTR near Sioux Lookout. The route paralleled the CPR for 135 mi west of Winnipeg before it veered northwest. That year, the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan were established. The line proceeded west to Saskatoon in 1907, Edmonton in 1909, and Wolf Creek in 1910. For contractual purposes, Winnipeg to Wolf Creek (Edson, Alberta) was the Prairie Section, and Wolf Creek to the Pacific was the Mountain Section. Foley, Welch and Stewart (FW&S) was selected as the prime contractor for the latter.
The GTPR followed the original Sandford Fleming "Canadian Pacific Survey" route from Jasper, Alberta through the Yellowhead Pass, and the track-laying machine crossed the BC/Alberta border in November 1911.[2] In the mountain region, costs escalated to $105,000 per mile, compared with the budgeted $60,000. Following the CNoR paralleling through the Rockies, which created 108.4 mi of duplication, the GTPR rail bed largely became redundant.[3] The more northerly Pine Pass option, as specified in its charter, may have been a better choice in terms of developing traffic and in improving the current CNR network (especially if the later Pacific Great Eastern Railway route had opted for the Monkman Pass crossing). To secure concessions from the BC government, eastward construction from the Pacific Coast began in 1907. The track east of Prince Rupert reached 50 miles,[4] then 102 miles by 1910,[5] the Bulkley Valley in 1912 and Burns Lake in 1913. The line completed across the prairies, through the Rockies, and to the newly-constructed seaport at Prince Rupert. The last spike ceremony occurred one mile east of Fort Fraser, British Columbia at Stuart (Finmoore) on April 7, 1914. A 1910 prediction had correctly claimed if a line were built from Tête Jaune Cache to Vancouver, it would effectively kill Prince Rupert and relegate its route to branch line status.[6]
Construction crews
Claiming labour shortages, the GTP attempted to obtain government approval to bring in unskilled immigrants from Asia.[7] By late 1912, 6,000 men had become employed east of Edmonton.[8] Although contractors prohibited liquor in camps, bootlegging was rampant. FW&S provided hospitals and medical services by charging employees one dollar per month. The articles for the Grand Canyon of the Fraser, Dome Creek, McGregor, Upper Fraser, and the BC communities within the Category:Grand Trunk Pacific Railway stations, outline construction through those specific localities.
Flat-bottomed sternwheelers
FW&S operated five steamboats to supply their camps advancing east from Prince Rupert on the Skeena River. Launched in 1908, the Distributor and Skeena remained until 1914, as did the Omineca, which was purchased in 1908. Launched in 1909, the Operator and Conveyor were disassembled in 1911, transported to Tête Jaune and relaunched in 1912 on the Fraser River.[9] Detailed articles cover the sternwheelers Skeena, Operator, and Conveyor and their roles on the Skeena River, and on the Fraser River.
Fraser River scows
During the construction phase from Tête Jaune to Fort George thousands of tons of freight for railway construction and merchants travelled downstream from the railhead by scow.[10] In 1913, when scowing on that part of the river peaked, about 1,500 men were employed as scowmen, or "River Hogs," as they were generally called. In high water, the trip from Tête Jaune took five days and in low water up to 12 days because of the shallow bars. Each vessel measured about 40 ft long and 12-16 ft wide and carried 20–30 tons. Two men crewed each end. The Goat River Rapids, Grand Canyon, and Giscome Rapids, were extremely dangerous, with wrecks and drownings common. Dismantlers purchased the scows that survived the journey, selling the used lumber primarily for house building.[11]
Real estate development
The funding for railway expansion depended upon returns from the sale of land acquired by the railway. The Grand Trunk Pacific Town & Development Co. was responsible for locating and promoting strategic town sites. However, the priority of maximizing profit undermined the economic prosperity of communities and other businesses by hampering the increase in traffic volumes essential for the GTP’s own survival.[12] In 1910 at Prince Rupert, although 25 real estate agents operated, David Hayes, the brother of GTP President Charles Melville Hays, was the sole company agent.
In what would become Prince George, the company purchased the First Nations reserve for a railway yard and a new town site. The GTPR also caused the displacement and the socio-economic destruction of native communities along the route, many of which had social and economic values in conflict with those of the railway.[13]
