The annual Railway Days celebration of the city’s historic relationship with the Canadian Pacific Railway can definitely be considered a success.
The Railway Museum was heavily visited by locals and by travellers who found themselves cooling their heels in town after the Trans-Canada Highway was closed for hours after a major accident.
Those visitors wandered all through the downtown core of the city with their families. Naturally, a lot of them ended up at the museum.
Here are a few photos from the weekend celebration that we hope you’ll enjoy:
The annual Railway Days festival got underway on Friday with the opening of a weekend-long exhibition about the Empress of Ireland. The travelling exhibition’s curator, Pascale St-Amand, describes how the Canadian Pacific oceanic steamer sank in the St. Lawrence River when it was hit by a Norwegian collier on May 29, 1914. Of the 1,477 persons on board the ship, the accident claimed the lives of 1,012 (840 passengers, 172 crew). The number of deaths is the largest of any Canadian maritime accident in peacetime. David F. Rooney photoThe tragedy of the Empress of Ireland, which was the heavily advertised in posters by CP, is surprisingly unknown in Canada. David F. Rooney photoAfter the formal opening of the Empress of Ireland exhibit, guests enjoyed food by Buns and Beyond and the music of the ever-popular Kettle Valley Brakemen. David F. Rooney photoSaturday morning was bright and warm and there were scads of visitors in town, partly due to the fact that the Trans-Canada Highway was closed due to a major accident. Visitors amused themselves by mingling with local residents at the Farmer’s Market where there were some real bargains to be had, such as magnificent belt buckles created by Kristen Page of Golden. You can discover more about her work at www.ingrainedwoodworks.ca. David F. Rooney photoRailway Days also spawned a sidewalk sale on First Street West. David F. Rooney photoMarjorie Somerton (center), the Railway Museum’s executive director talks with a family of Albertans who wanted to visit the museum on Family Days. David F. Rooney photoMeanwhile, at the Railway Museum there were lots of visitors who enjoyed the permanent displays. David F. Rooney photo
And look who came out of retirement to serve up hot dogs and smokies — Denis Berarducci! If you were hungry, Denito had what you needed to banish your hunger pangs. David F. Rooney photoThe museum’s Rotary Park was filled with visitors — both local and out-of-towners ± who enjoyed their lunches and wandered around enjoying the rolling stock displays. David F. Rooney photoOne activity that was popular with young children was an opportunity to create hobo codes — signs hobos created to let their fellow wanderers know what to expect in different areas. David F. Rooney photoThere was even a recreation of a hobo camp not unlike those created by unemployed men who crisscrossed the country looking for food or work during the Great Depression. David F. Rooney photoJames Walford demonstrates how a velocipede worked. The simple machines allowed CPR staff to travel along its rail lines. David F. Rooney photoThe velocipede was a popular activity for train lovers of all ages. David F. Rooney photoCurts Neale (back left) and his kids, Sarah, Carly and Riley of Drayton Valley, Alberta, set off on the Velocipede. David F. Rooney photoLater on Saturday evening Shred Kelly, a popular band from Fernie, set up their equipment for an evening concert. They went ahead despite on-again/off-again rain storms. David F. Rooney photoOn Sunday, Revelstoke’s Vintage Car Club staged at Show ‘n’ Shine at the museum. David F. Rooney photoThis 1949 Chevrolet pick up owned by John Scarcelli was one of the beauties on exhibit. David F. Rooney photoOne of the most-admired vehicles was this 1932 Ford. It looks great but its owner Don Hawker (second rom the left in back) admitted that it’s a faux ’32 Ford. “It’s not an original,” he said. “But neither are a lot of the ’32 Fords s you see on the road these days,” he said. There are probably more 1932 Fords on the road now than there were in 1932.” That may well be true but it’s still a gorgeous machine. David F. Rooney photoThis 1928 model A Ford belongs to George and Saralene Hopkins. Again, another beauty. David F. Rooney photo
