Despite the "green" benefits of rail travel, Canada has lost much of its railway heritage. Across the country stations have been bulldozed and rails ripped up. Once the heart of communities large and small, stations and tracks have left little more than a gaping hole in Canada's landscapes. This book revisits the times when railways were the country's economic lifeline, and the station the social centre. Here was where we worked, played, listened to political speeches, or simply said goodbye to loved ones never knowing when they would return. The landscapes which grew around the station are also explored and include such forgotten features as station hotels, restaurants, gardens and the once common railway YMCA. Railway companies often hired the world's leading architects to design grand station buildings which ranged in style from chateau-esque to art deco. Even small town stations and wayside shelters displayed an artistic flare and elegance. Although most have vanished, the book celebrates the survival of that heritage in stations which have been saved or indeed remain in use.
The book will appeal to anyone who has links with our rail era, or who simply appreciates the value of Canada's built heritage.
- ISBN10 6613091510
- ISBN13 9786613091512
- Publish Date 21 April 2008 (first published 1 June 2003)
- Publish Status Active
- Out of Print 28 September 2011
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Dundurn Group
- Format eBook
- Pages 192
- Language English