Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR)

The Canadian Pacific Railway was the catalyst for tourism in the Canadian Rockies. BC joined Confederation in 1871 on the promise of a transcontinental line within ten years. After the Pacific Scandal (1873), Macdonald’s return in 1878, and the syndicate takeover in 1880 (George Stephen, president), William Cornelius Van Horne became General Manager in 1882. He transformed the CPR from a struggling line into a hospitality empire, famously stating: “Since we can’t export the scenery, we’ll have to import the tourists.”

Banff. The townsite originated as Siding 29. In November 1883 CPR workers discovered the Cave and Basin hot springs on Sulphur Mountain; the government intervened in 1885 to create a 2,500-hectare reserve, laying the foundation for Banff National Park. Siding 29 was renamed Banff (George Stephen’s birthplace in Scotland). The Rocky Mountains Park Act (1887) established the park to generate tourism revenue. The Banff Springs Hotel (Bruce Price, 1888) opened as a centre for spa culture and social tourism.

Lake Louise. The lake was known to the Stoney Nakoda as Ho-run-num-nay (Lake of Little Fishes). The lake drains to the Bow River, which the CPR paralleled through the Bow Valley. The CPR enabled early scientific tourism; Mary Vaux Walcott and her brothers used the railway for their 1887 expedition and subsequent glacial and botanical work at Lake Louise. Tom Wilson, a CPR packer, was led there in August 1882 by Stoney guide Edwin Hunter (Goldseeker). Wilson named it Emerald Lake; in 1884 the Geographic Board renamed it Lake Louise to honour Princess Louise, wife of the Governor General. The CPR built the first chalet in 1890; Chateau Lake Louise evolved through Rattenbury (1900), Painter (1912), and the 1924 fire and Barott & Blackader rebuild (1925–26).

Kicking Horse Pass. The pass was discovered by the British North American Exploring Expedition (Palliser Expedition, 1857–1860). In August 1858 geologist Sir James Hector was kicked by his pack horse while crossing the Beaverfoot River; his guides presumed him dead and began digging a grave before he regained consciousness. The river and Kicking Horse Pass were named for the incident. William Cornelius Van Horne chose the southerly route; Major A.B. Rogers verified and engineered it, approving the 4.5% “Big Hill” grade (too steep for dining cars; forcing the CPR to build meal stops that became the chalet tourism empire). The Spiral Tunnels (J.E. Schwitzer, 1909) reduced the grade to 2.2%. The Lake Louise Railway Station (originally Laggan) was a crew-change point and pusher staging yard; a narrow-gauge tramway (1912–30) linked the station to the Chateau until the motor road opened (1926). Jim and Bill Brewster held the exclusive CPR contract to transport guests from the station to the Banff Springs Hotel and became the railway’s official outfitters.

Swiss guides. Following Philip Stanley Abbot’s death on Mount Lefroy in 1896; the first mountaineering fatality in North America; the CPR hired professional guides from Switzerland. Eduard Feuz Sr. and Christian Haesler Sr. arrived in 1899; the dynasty continued until 1954 with Edward Feuz Jr., Rudolf Aemmer, and Walter Perren. They led hundreds of first ascents with zero fatalities, built Abbot Pass Hut (1922) and the Plain of Six Glaciers Tea House (1924), and introduced skiing to the Rockies.

Indigenous exclusion. The creation of Rocky Mountains Park in 1887 involved the exclusion of the Stoney Nakoda, Blackfoot, and Ktunaxa from their traditional lands. Hunting was banned for Indigenous groups while sport hunting was encouraged. “Banff Indian Days” (1890–1948); William Twin was central to recruiting Stoney families from Morley; invited Nakoda back for parades and performances; a colonial spectacle that also allowed cultural practices to continue. Parks Canada now works toward reconciliation and Indigenous Frameworks.

The CPR’s hotels, stations, and rail bed remain the economic and cultural core of the region. The railway invented a wilderness to save a nation; and in doing so, transformed the Rockies into a symbol of Canadian identity.