It’s hard for us to imagine in 2011 that railways used to be the ultimate symbol of modernity. In the age of steam engines, every community wished to be connected to the world by rail. So it was, on August 13, 1886 that the communities along the newly constructed Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway joined the modern world. The first train had finally arrived!

It was a sunny, gorgeous morning in Victoria. The Prime Minister of Canada, Sir John Alexander Macdonald, and Lady Macdonald were staying at the Driard Hotel. The Macdonalds’ stay had been filled with events befitting the occasion of the first visit of the Canadian Prime Minister and MP for Victoria to the province’s capital. Events included a public ball at the Victoria Assembly Club held in honour of Sir John and Lady Macdonald, a civic address held at the Victoria Theatre, a regatta with Sir John present as guest of honour, and a torchlight procession.

The day began at 7:00am when Sir John and Lady Macdonald were driven in a carriage to the train station in Esquimalt (a dusty four-mile journey). The waiting train was a small one, consisting of the steam locomotive (engine No 2), a private coach, “Maude” (which belonged to Mr. Robert Dunsmuir, the president of the E&N), and a flat car for excess baggage. Aboard the train were other distinguished guests including Mr. Robert Dunsmuir, himself, Mr. William Smithe (the Premier), Sir M.B. Begbie, the Honourable Mr. Joseph Trutch, several members of the Provincial Parliament, a future premier of BC (James Dunsmuir), two future Lieutenant Governors (James Dunsmuir and Thomas Wilson Patterson), civil engineers and contractors of the railway, two reporters, and the mysterious Miss Reiffenstein.

The train left Esquimalt at 7:25 (or was it 8:25?) heading up island for Goldstream, Niagara, and Arbutus Canyons crossing on high wooden trestles. The view would have been magnificent from the top of the summit (Malahat) especially for Lady Macdonald, who chose to be seated on the flat car in order to appreciate the scenery better, and also, it would seem, to shun the smoke and men’s talk in the private coach.

At Cliffside beside Shawnigan Lake (at the present Mile 25) the small train slowed and stopped. Everyone alighted and Sir John was handed a silver hammer by Joseph Hunter, Chief Engineer of the railway. Macdonald drove home the last spike, marking the completion of the E&N Railway. The ceremony took place shortly after 9:00am (according to some reports) but it may have been later. The last spike was either made of silver or gold, depending on whichever story you choose to believe. We have no way of determining since the spike has long since disappeared. We are also left with the odd fact that it’s highly likely that no photograph was taken of the driving of the last spike. [Surely you would think with two newspaper reporters on board that someone would have captured this historic moment.]

Macdonald gave a quick speech, praising Mr. Robert Dunsmuir for his pluck and courage in completing the Island Railway. Three cheers were given to Mr. Dunsmuir and the new railway. The train then headed towards the Cowichan Valley. Approaching Duncan’s Crossing on the Cowichan River, the train was stopped unexpectedly by the presence of a large number of local residents who wished, not only to cheer the celebrities, but also in the hope that Duncan’s Crossing (Alderlea) be considered as a stop on the line; that is why Duncan (without the “’s”) has a train station. The inaugural train reached Nanaimo at 12.30pm and received a salute from the guns of Stewart’s Battery.

Following the official speeches of welcome, the party was invited to go down the Vancouver Coal Company’s Esplanade Mine. Dunsmuir and Macdonald both descended some 630 feet. There is a rumour that while in the mineshaft the two Scots toasted the completion of the railway with something stronger than water while out of sight of Lady Macdonald.

The dignitaries then enjoyed a luncheon at the Royal Hotel, hosted by Mr. Dunsmuir. After the excellent meal, the honoured guests were driven through the festively decorated streets of Nanaimo, proceeding on to the town of Wellington where all had an opportunity to visit Mr. Dunsmuir and Sons’ Wellington Collieries. A sign across the track read: “The Newcastle of the Pacific heartily greets you.” Returning to Nanaimo, the moment of departure had arrived as Sir John and Lady Macdonald boarded Dunsmuir’s steamer “Alexander,” bound for New Westminster. The Nanaimo Brass Band played some choice selections of music while the crowd gathered at the dock to cheer the Prime Minister and Lady Macdonald. It had been a most memorable day in the history of Vancouver Island.

WORTH KNOWING

1. The Pullman car “Maude” was also known as “The Palace”. It was bought by Mr. Dunsmuir from the C.P.R. and had been the private car of Andrew Onderdonk, contractor and manager of the work on the B.C. section of the C.P.R.
2. Lady Macdonald rode through the Rockies seated on a chair which had been carefully mounted on the cowcatcher of the locomotive.
3. The E&N was 71 miles long from Esquimalt to Nanaimo and began in the fall of 1884. The federal government  contributed  $750,000 ($1,886 dollars) and the province offered the railway a land grant of 800,000 acres (35,112 ha) on the east coast of Vancouver Island.
4. Joseph William Trutch was the first Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia and had been one of the representatives of British Columbia to negotiate entry of the colony into the Canadian confederation 1n 1871.
5. Sir M.B. Begbie was none other than the famous Chief Justice of colonial B.C. and known widely as the “hanging judge”.
6. Miss Georgina Caroline Reiffenstein was a family friend of the Macdonalds and the travelling companion of Lady Macdonald. She was employed in the Department of Indian Affairs at the time of her trip.

Acknowledgements

My thanks to the British Colonist Collection online and to the Nanaimo Public Library for its Nanaimo Free Press Collection.  There were two books I found most useful, The Esquimalt & Nanaimo Railway by Donald F. MacLachlan and Vancouver Island Railroads by Robert D. Turner. I also enjoyed Jim Hume’s article in the Victoria Times Colonist entitled Last Spike Hammered Home,  written in 2008.

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