George VI
George VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death on 6 February 1952. He was the first Head of the Commonwealth. Known publicly as Albert until his accession, "Bertie" among his family and close friends, George VI was born in the reign of his great-grandmother Queen Victoria, was named after his great-grandfather Albert, Prince Consort; as the second son of King George V, he was not expected to inherit the throne and spent his early life in the shadow of his elder brother, Edward. He attended naval college as a teenager, served in the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force during the First World War. In 1920, he was made Duke of York, he married Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon in 1923 and they had two daughters and Margaret. In the mid-1920s, he had speech therapy for a stammer, which he never overcame. George's elder brother ascended the throne as Edward VIII upon the death of their father in 1936; however that year Edward revealed his desire to marry divorced American socialite Wallis Simpson.
British prime minister Stanley Baldwin advised Edward that for political and religious reasons he could not marry a divorced woman and remain king. Edward abdicated to marry Simpson, George ascended the throne as the third monarch of the House of Windsor. During George's reign, the break-up of the British Empire and its transition into the Commonwealth of Nations accelerated; the parliament of the Irish Free State removed direct mention of the monarch from the country's constitution on the day of his accession. The following year, a new Irish constitution changed the name of the state to Ireland and established the office of President. From 1939, the Empire and Commonwealth – except Ireland – was at war with Nazi Germany. War with Italy and Japan followed in 1941, respectively. Though Britain and its allies were victorious in 1945, the United States and the Soviet Union rose as pre-eminent world powers and the British Empire declined. After the independence of India and Pakistan in 1947, George remained king of both countries, but relinquished the title of Emperor of India in June 1948.
Ireland formally declared itself a republic and left the Commonwealth in 1949, India became a republic within the Commonwealth the following year. George adopted the new title of Head of the Commonwealth, he was beset by smoking-related health problems in the years of his reign. He was succeeded by his elder daughter, Elizabeth II. George was born at York Cottage, on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, during the reign of his great-grandmother Queen Victoria, his father was Prince George, Duke of York, the second and eldest-surviving son of the Prince and Princess of Wales. His mother was the Duchess of York, the eldest child and only daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Teck, his birthday, 14 December 1895, was the 34th anniversary of the death of his great-grandfather, Prince Consort. Uncertain of how the Prince Consort's widow, Queen Victoria, would take the news of the birth, the Prince of Wales wrote to the Duke of York that the Queen had been "rather distressed". Two days he wrote again: "I think it would gratify her if you yourself proposed the name Albert to her".
Queen Victoria was mollified by the proposal to name the new baby Albert, wrote to the Duchess of York: "I am all impatience to see the new one, born on such a sad day but rather more dear to me as he will be called by that dear name, a byword for all, great and good". He was baptised "Albert Frederick Arthur George" at St. Mary Magdalene's Church near Sandringham three months later. Within the family, he was known informally as "Bertie", his maternal grandmother, the Duchess of Teck, did not like the first name the baby had been given, she wrote prophetically that she hoped the last name "may supplant the less favoured one". Albert was fourth in line to the throne at birth, after his grandfather and elder brother, Edward, he suffered from ill health and was described as "easily frightened and somewhat prone to tears". His parents were removed from their children's day-to-day upbringing, as was the norm in aristocratic families of that era, he had a stammer. Although left-handed, he was forced to write with his right hand, as was common practice at the time.
He suffered from chronic stomach problems as well as knock knees, for which he was forced to wear painful corrective splints. Queen Victoria died on 22 January 1901, the Prince of Wales succeeded her as King Edward VII. Prince Albert moved up to third in line after his father and elder brother. From 1909, Albert attended Osborne, as a naval cadet. In 1911 he came bottom of the class in the final examination, but despite this he progressed to the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth; when his grandfather, Edward VII, died in 1910, Albert's father became King George V. Edward became Prince of Wales, with Albert second in line to the throne. Albert spent the first six months of 1913 on the training ship HMS Cumberland in the West Indies and on the east coast of Canada, he was rated as a midshipman aboard HMS Collingwood on 15 September 1913, spent three months in the Mediterranean. His fellow officers gave him the nickname "Mr. Johnson"; the First World War broke out a year after his commission. Three weeks after the outbreak of war he was medically evacuated from the ship to Aberdeen where his appendix was removed by Sir John Marnoch.
He was mentioned in despatches for his action as a turret officer aboard Collingwood i
Alberta
Alberta is a western province of Canada. With an estimated population of 4,067,175 as of 2016 census, it is Canada's fourth most populous province and the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces, its area is about 660,000 square kilometres. Alberta and its neighbour Saskatchewan were districts of the Northwest Territories until they were established as provinces on September 1, 1905; the premier has been Rachel Notley since May 2015. Alberta is bounded by the provinces of British Columbia to the west and Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territories to the north, the U. S. state of Montana to the south. Alberta is one of three Canadian provinces and territories to border only a single U. S. state and one of only two landlocked provinces. It has a predominantly humid continental climate, with stark contrasts over a year. Alberta's capital, Edmonton, is near the geographic centre of the province and is the primary supply and service hub for Canada's crude oil, the Athabasca oil sands and other northern resource industries.
About 290 km south of the capital is the largest city in Alberta. Calgary and Edmonton centre Alberta's two census metropolitan areas, both of which have populations exceeding one million, while the province has 16 census agglomerations. Tourist destinations in the province include Banff, Drumheller, Sylvan Lake and Lake Louise. Alberta is named after the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria. Princess Louise was the wife of Marquess of Lorne, Governor General of Canada. Lake Louise and Mount Alberta were named in her honour. Alberta, with an area of 661,848 km2, is the fourth-largest province after Quebec and British Columbia. To the south, the province borders on the 49th parallel north, separating it from the U. S. state of Montana, while to the north the 60th parallel north divides it from the Northwest Territories. To the east, the 110th meridian west separates it from the province of Saskatchewan, while on the west its boundary with British Columbia follows the 120th meridian west south from the Northwest Territories at 60°N until it reaches the Continental Divide at the Rocky Mountains, from that point follows the line of peaks marking the Continental Divide in a southeasterly direction until it reaches the Montana border at 49°N.
The province extends 660 km east to west at its maximum width. Its highest point is 3,747 m at the summit of Mount Columbia in the Rocky Mountains along the southwest border while its lowest point is 152 m on the Slave River in Wood Buffalo National Park in the northeast. With the exception of the semi-arid steppe of the south-eastern section, the province has adequate water resources. There are numerous lakes used for swimming, fishing and a range of water sports. There are three large lakes, Lake Claire in Wood Buffalo National Park, Lesser Slave Lake, Lake Athabasca which lies in both Alberta and Saskatchewan; the longest river in the province is the Athabasca River which travels 1,538 km from the Columbia Icefield in the Rocky Mountains to Lake Athabasca. The largest river is the Peace River with an average flow of 2161 m3/s; the Peace River originates in the Rocky Mountains of northern British Columbia and flows through northern Alberta and into the Slave River, a tributary of the Mackenzie River.
Alberta's capital city, Edmonton, is located at about the geographic centre of the province. It is the most northerly major city in Canada, serves as a gateway and hub for resource development in northern Canada; the region, with its proximity to Canada's largest oil fields, has most of western Canada's oil refinery capacity. Calgary is about 280 km south of Edmonton and 240 km north of Montana, surrounded by extensive ranching country. 75% of the province's population lives in the Calgary–Edmonton Corridor. The land grant policy to the railroads served as a means to populate the province in its early years. Most of the northern half of the province is boreal forest, while the Rocky Mountains along the southwestern boundary are forested; the southern quarter of the province is prairie, ranging from shortgrass prairie in the southeastern corner to mixed grass prairie in an arc to the west and north of it. The central aspen parkland region extending in a broad arc between the prairies and the forests, from Calgary, north to Edmonton, east to Lloydminster, contains the most fertile soil in the province and most of the population.
Much of the unforested part of Alberta is given over either to grain or to dairy farming, with mixed farming more common in the north and centre, while ranching and irrigated agriculture predominate in the south. The Alberta badlands are located in southeastern Alberta, where the Red Deer River crosses the flat prairie and farmland, features deep canyons and striking landforms. Dinosaur Provincial Park, near Brooks, showcases the badlands terrain, desert flora, remnants from Alberta's past when dinosaurs roamed the lush landscape. Alberta has a humid continental climate with cold winters; the province is open to cold arctic weather systems from the north, which produce cold conditions in winter. As the fronts between the air masses shift north and south across Alberta, the temperature can change rapidly. Arctic
Lord Nelson Hotel
The Lord Nelson Hotel & Suites refereed to as the Lord Nelson Hotel, is a grand hotel in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is located on the corner of Spring Garden Road and South Park Street across from the Halifax Public Gardens, it was built in 1927 by a consortium of investors led by the Canadian Pacific Railway who wanted a Halifax anchor to the chain of hotels operated by its Nova Scotian subsidiary, the Dominion Atlantic Railway. Along with the rival Canadian National Railway's Hotel Nova Scotian which began the same year, the Lord Nelson was Halifax's first modern hotel; the hotel was named after Admiral Horatio Nelson, who never came to Halifax in his famous naval career, but whose name stood for naval traditions associated with the heritage of Halifax. On Friday, October 21, 1927, construction on the Lord Nelson Hotel began at the corner of Spring Garden Road and South Park Street on the old Dwyer property; the turning of the first sod was done by Mayor Kenny of Halifax, supported by a group of friends and well-wishers.
The Lord Nelson Hotel opened for business on October 23, 1928. The hotel has changed hands over the years and is now owned; the task of supervising the construction was assumed by O. C. Gross, with construction carried out by H. L. Stevens & Co. of New York and Toronto, for Canadian Pacific Railways, which had constructed a chain of hotels in the Annapolis Valley for its subsidiary, the Dominion Atlantic Railway. The Stevens company had building experience in frosty winter weather; the building has a reinforced concrete foundation, topped with a course of granite to support the brick walls. The hotel closest in style to the Lord Nelson Hotel at the time of construction was the Van Curler Hotel at Schenectady, New York, built for the General Electric Company; the walls of the Lord Nelson are of bluenose brick with ornate frame and Nova Scotia trip, with the concrete framework being covered in by brick. The aim of the construction was to to award contracts locally; as much as possible materials available in Nova Scotia were used.
The main entrance to the hotel is on South Park Street, featured a semi-circular driveway with trees and shrubs. The Georgian style has been incorporated in the construction of the hotel, featuring special decorations pertaining to Lord Nelson. From the lobby you can see a large mural of Nelson addressing his men on the deck of his flagship HMS Victory, just before the Battle of Trafalgar; this painting was done by a native of New Brunswick. Her family moved to Eelbrook, Nova Scotia and young Julia Landry entered the Sisters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul, where she was professed as Sister Agnes Berchmans at the turn of the century. There are two of her paintings in the hotel, the large mural, smaller one located in the Georgian Lounge; the gold leaf lobby ceiling is copied from the ceiling in the House of Commons in Ottawa, was hand-finished by an Italian craftsman. There are floral and other motifs on the inverted sections, with the C. P. Railways logo among them; the lobby is 80 feet by 40 feet, the Georgian Lounge is 60 feet by 28 feet.
The original ballroom, called the Regency is 88 feet by 38 feet and still has the original hardwood floor and crystal chandeliers. The original section of the hotel had seven stories with 200 rooms. There have since been two additions, the hotel now features 260 rooms; the 8th and 9th floors were added in 1966, the North Tower section was added in 1975. The hotel helped make Spring Garden Road into a major shopping district. Spring Garden Road shops at the time of construction consisted of a beauty shop, a barber shop, a large grill; the Lord Nelson Hotel was named after England’s greatest naval hero: Horatio Nelson. A young student, Oswald Schenk, won a contest for suggesting the name of the hotel; the hotel opened during the early days of radio and because of its height, CHNS, which begn in 1926, moved its broadcast studio from the old Carleton Hotel to the roof of the new Lord Nelson in 1928. It inspired a critically acclaimed novel by Ray Smith called Lord Nelson Tavern, first published in 1974.
The Lord Nelson inspired the fictional hotel featured in the award-winning 1998 novel The Museum Guard by Howard Norman. Famous guests who have stayed at the Lord Nelson Hotel include the Rolling Stones, Anne Murray, Keith Urban, the White Stripes, Jerry Seinfeld, Ozzy Osbourne, Paul McCartney. Official website Emporis listing
Fairmont Royal York
The Fairmont Royal York and known as the Royal York, is a large historic luxury hotel in Toronto, Canada. Located along Front Street West, the hotel is situated at the southern end of the Financial District, in Downtown Toronto; the Royal York was designed by Ross and Macdonald, in association with Sproatt and Rolph, built by the Canadian Pacific Railway company. The hotel is presently managed by Fairmont Hotels and Resorts. Opened on 11 June 1929, the Châteauesque-styled building is 124-metre-tall, contains 28 floors, it is considered one of Canada's grand railway hotels. After its completion, the building was the tallest building in Toronto, as well as the tallest building in the country, the British Empire, until the nearby Canadian Bank of Commerce Tower was built the following year; the building has undergone several extensive renovations since it first opened, with its first major renovation in 1972. An underground walkway linking the hotel with the Royal Bank Plaza and Union Station form part of the Toronto's PATH underground city system.
The Royal York Hotel sits at 100 Front Street West at the southern end of the Financial District, a business district in Downtown Toronto. The hotel property is bounded by Piper Street to the north, York Street to the west, whereas its eastern portion is bounded by Royal Bank Plaza, an office complex that serves as the operational headquarters of the Royal Bank of Canada. Union Station, the city's main intermodal transportation hub, is located south of the hotel, across Front Street West; the Royal York was not the first hotel built on the site. The first hotel was built in 1843 and was known as the Ontario Terrace, it consisted of four brick houses, was occupied by Knox College, a seminary. The former hotel was demolished to make way for the Royal York. Located at the southern end of the Financial District, near Bay Street, the hotel is situated within Canada's financial centre, its southerly location within the Financial District places the hotel near several downtown neighbourhoods. Southwest of the Financial District is the Entertainment District, whereas the neighbourhoods of St. Lawrence and South Core are located to the east, south of the Financial District.
The hotel building forms a part of the Union Station Heritage Conservation District, a historic district surrounding Union Station. The creation of the historic district was through the Ontario Heritage Act, was enacted by Toronto City Council on July 2006. Given its overlap with the Financial District, the historic district is an eclectic collection of buildings, with structures dating from the 1850s to the present day. Historic buildings within this district include the Dominion Public Building, The Toronto Club. Shortly after acquiring the property, Canadian Pacific Hotels, a division of the Canadian Pacific Railway, announced its plan to demolish the Queen's Hotel in order to construct a new hotel; the building's was design by a Canadian architectural firm and Macdonald, in association with Sproatt and Rolph. Both firms had designed buildings for Canadian Pacific Hotels prior to the Royal York Hotel; the building design went through several drafts before its final draft, "H plan," was adopted.
The plan saw the development of a towering central element, in an effort to distinguish itself from the buildings of the nearby Eaton's Annex. The building's towering design enabled most rooms and public spaces to face either the downtown core of the city, or the Toronto waterfront and Lake Ontario. Completed in 1929, the Châteauesque-styled hotel includes a row of pointed arches on the third story, a small peaked roof with tiny dormers at the top of the pitched roof. In addition, grotesques shaped as griffins are present at various corners of the hotel; the building's exterior is made of Indiana Limestone, which encases the hotel's 28-story steel frame. Along with traditional features found on most Chateauesque-styled hotel, the building incorporated an Art Deco setback and Romanesque-inspired decor; the balanced design of the building was achieved through the application of semi-neoclassical motifs, groups of arcaded windows. The interior of the building was created in an Edwardian architectural style.
Its interior features a number of crystal chandeliers, a hand-carved wood lobby ceiling. The building stands 124-metre-tall, containing 28 floors made up of guest rooms and other hotel amenities. After the building's completion, it was the tallest building in the British Empire, Canada; the building would lose the record the following year, with the erection of the nearby Canadian Bank of Commerce Tower on King Street. Work to enlarge the hotel commenced in 1957, was completed in 1959; the new east wing expansion was designed by the architecture firm Ross, Townsend, & Fish, in association with Charles B. Dolphin; when the Royal York first opened, the hotel included 1,048 guest suites. When the hotel first opened, it featured; as of 2014, the hotel expanded the number of its guest rooms and suites to 1,363. Types of guest rooms include Luxury, along with an array of eight types of suites. In addition to lodgings, the hotel offers a number of event spaces; the hotel features an entire floor of function rooms used for conferences.
A notable room at the hotel includes the Ballroom, which features an oil-painted ceiling from the hotel's opening. The Concert Hall is another event space at the hotel, outfitted with a Casavant Frères pipe organ. With five manuals and one-hundred-and-seven stops, it was the largest pipe organ in Canada. Another notable event space within the hotel is th
Hotel Vancouver
The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver and referred to as the Hotel Vancouver, is a historic hotel in Vancouver, British Columbia. Located along West Georgia Street the hotel is situated within the city's Financial District, in Downtown Vancouver; the hotel was designed by two architects, John Smith Archibald, John Schofield. The hotel is presently managed by Fairmont Hotels and Resorts. Opened in May 1939, the Châteauesque-styled building is considered one of Canada's grand railway hotels; the hotel stands 112.47-metre-tall, contains 17 floors. Following its completion, the hotel became the tallest building in Vancouver until the completion of TD Tower in 1972. Hotel Vancouver sits at 900 West Georgia Street, within the Financial District, the central business district of Downtown Vancouver; the hotel property is bounded by Burrard Street to the northwest, West Georgia Street to the northeast, Hornby Street to the southeast. To the southwest, the hotel property is bounded by two buildings, including 750 Burrard Street.
The hotel is located close to several attractions in downtown Vancouver. The hotel is situated directly northwest of the Vancouver Art Gallery, as well as Robson Square, a public square adjacent to the art museum. North of the hotel lies Christ Church Cathedral, the oldest church in the city; the hotel is situated near two SkyTrain rapid transit stations, Burrard station, Vancouver City Centre station. Hotel Vancouver is one of Canada's grand railway hotels built by Canadian National Railway; the building was designed by Canadian architects, John Smith Archibald, John Schofield. Although construction for the hotel began in 1929, its completion would not occur until 1939 as a result of funding issues during Great Depression; the completion of the hotel required a joint investment into the property from Canadian Pacific Hotels, a division of Canadian Pacific Railway. The hotel was a part of series of Chateauesque grand railway hotels built throughout Canada in the late-19th and early 20th centuries.
Like the other grand railway hotels, Hotel Vancouver incorporates elements from chateaus found in France's Loire Valley. Chateauesque features found on Hotel Vancouver includes its prominent copper pitched roof with dormers, carved stonework encompassing a steel frame. In addition to chateauesque elements found on most grand railway hotels, Hotel Vancouver incorporates Renaissance architectural detailings and relief sculptures. Hotel Vancouver stands 112.47-metre-tall, containing 17 floors made up of guest rooms and other hotel amenities. After the building was completed in 1939, it became the tallest building in Vancouver until the completion of TD Tower in 1972; the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver includes 557 guest suites spread throughout the hotel. Suites at Hotel Vancouver include the Royal Suite; the Lieutenant Governor's Suite was designed with Art Deco stylings, features black walnut veneer-panelled walls. In 2018, the hotel announced the completion of its four-year renovation project, which saw a reworked main lobby, guest rooms.
The project restored the 14th floor of the hotel to its original decor from 1939. Restored items on the 14th floor include English harewood doors with bronze doorplates, bronze hallway doors, sapele-panelled walls with bronze strips at its elevator lobby. In addition to lodgings, the hotel houses several food-based services, as well as a restaurant, Notch8 Restaurant + Bar; the restaurant hosts the hotel's afternoon tea service. Other facilities at the hotel include a gym, swimming pool, spa. Plans to develop a railway hotel at the present site of Hotel Vancouver first emerged in the 1920s, from Canadian Northern Railway. In 1929 work on the present Hotel Vancouver commenced for Canadian National Railway. Canadian National Railway built the hotel as a result of a land deal between the city, Canadian Northern Railway, a company acquired by Canadian National Railway; the land deal required the city to prepare tidal flats on False Creek for the construction of railway yards and Pacific Central Station.
In return, the company guaranteed the construction of a large downtown hotel, make the city the western terminus for its rail network. Shortly after the erection of the building's steel frame however, work on the hotel was halted, as a result of the Great Depression. Work did not resume on the building until 1937, when Canadian National Railway partnered with Canadian Pacific Railway to complete the new hotel. Work on the hotel was rushed to completion in time for King George VI and Queen Elizabeth's 1939 royal tour of Canada; the hotel was the third hotel in the city to use the name "Hotel Vancouver". The first and second Hotel Vancouver were both located southeast of the present hotel on West Georgia Street. In an effort to prevent competition with the new Hotel Vancouver, Canadian Pacific Railway, closed its hotel operations at the second Hotel Vancouver once the new hotel opened; the second Hotel Vancouver building was torn down in 1949, after Canadian Pacific sold the property to Eaton's in December 1948.
During the mid-20th century, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation radio stations were located within Hotel Vancouver. On 1 May 1940, Dal Richards began his career playing in an 11-piece band and a then-unknown 13-year-old Juliette at the hotel's Panorama Roof Ballroom, an event space at Hotel Vancouver. Richard became a regular performer for a CBC Radio show broadcast from the hotel. In 1962, Canadian National Hotels, a division of Canadian National Railway, acquired Canadian Pacific Hotels' share of the property, gaining full ownership of the hotel. From 1963 to 1983, the hotel was managed by Hilton Hotels & Resorts. Canadian National Hotels resumed management of the
Grand Trunk Pacific Railway
The Grand Trunk Pacific Railway was a historical Canadian transcontinental railway running from Winnipeg to the Pacific coast at Prince Rupert, British Columbia. East of Winnipeg the line continued as the National Transcontinental Railway, running across northern Ontario and Quebec, crossing the St. Lawrence River at Quebec City and ending at Moncton, New Brunswick; the Grand Trunk Railway operated the entire line. Constructed 1907-14, the GTPR operated 1914-19, prior to nationalization as the Canadian National Railway. Despite poor decision-making by the various levels of government and the railway management, the GTPR facilitated huge social benefits in the form of local employment opportunities, a telegraph service, freight and mail transportation; the Canadian Pacific Railway transcontinental and its feeder routes operated closer to the Canada–US border. Seeking a transcontinental to open up the central latitudes, the Government of Canada made overtures to the GTR and Canadian Northern Railway.
Both these regional operators in eastern and central Canada declined, because projected traffic volumes suggested unlikely profitability. Realizing expansion was essential, a GTR attempt to amalgamate with the CNoR proved unsuccessful; the GTR negotiated to construct only the western section, financed by government loans, while the federal government would build the eastern sections as the NTR. The respective legislation passed in 1903. Nearer to Asia than Vancouver, Port Simpson was located about 20 km southeast of the southern entrance to the Portland Canal. In 1903, when friction arose in Canada over the Alaska boundary decision favouring US interests, US President Theodore Roosevelt threatened to send an occupation force to nearby territory. In response, Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier changed the terminal location to the more defendable Kaien Island. During the official ceremony on September 11, 1905 at Fort William, Prime Minister Laurier turned the first sod for the construction of the GTPR.
From there, the Grand Trunk Pacific Construction Company built a 190-mile section of track, connecting with the NTR near Sioux Lookout. For contractual purposes, Winnipeg to Wolf Creek was the Prairie Section, Wolf Creek to the Pacific was the Mountain Section. Foley and Stewart was selected as the prime contractor for the latter. Construction began on the Canadian Prairies in 1905, the year that the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan were established, proceeding west to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in 1907, Edmonton, Alberta in 1909; the GTPR followed the original Sandford Fleming "Canadian Pacific Survey" route from Jasper, Alberta through the Yellowhead Pass, the track-laying machine crossed the BC/Alberta border in November 1911. The more northerly Pine Pass option, as specified in its charter, may have been a better choice in terms of developing traffic, in improving the current CNR network. To secure concessions from the BC provincial government, eastward construction from the Pacific Coast began in 1907.
The last spike ceremony, heralding completion of the rail line across the prairies, through the Canadian Rockies, to the newly constructed seaport at Prince Rupert, was held one mile east of Fort Fraser, British Columbia on April 7, 1914. Claiming labour shortages, the GTP was unsuccessful in obtaining government approval to bring in unskilled immigrants from Asia. By late 1912, 6,000 men were employed east of Edmonton. Although contractors prohibited liquor in camps, bootlegging was rampant. FW&S provided medical services, charging employees one dollar per month; the articles for the Grand Canyon of the Fraser, Dome Creek, McGregor, Upper Fraser, the BC communities within the Category:Grand Trunk Pacific Railway stations, outline construction through specific localities. 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, 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.
Detailed articles cover the sternwheelers Skeena and Conveyor and their roles on the Skeena River, on the Fraser River. During the construction phase from Tête Jaune to Fort George thousands of tons of freight, both for railway construction and merchants, travelled downstream from the railhead by scow. In 1913, when scowing on this part of the river peaked, about 1,500 men were employed as scowmen, or "River Hogs" as they were 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 12 -- 16 feet wide and carried 20-30 tons. Two men crewed each end; the Goat River Rapids, Grand Canyon, Giscome Rapids, were dangerous, with wrecks and drownings common. Dismantlers purchased the scows that survived the journey, selling the used lumber for house building; 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 maximising profit undermined the economic prosperity of communities and other businesses, hampering the increase in traffic volumes essential for the GTP’s own survival. In what would become Prince George, the company purchased the First Nations reserve for a rai
Place Viger
Place Viger was both a grand hotel and railway station in Montreal, Canada, constructed in 1898 and named after Jacques Viger, the first Mayor of the city. Although combined stations and hotels were common in the United Kingdom in the late 19th century, Place Viger was the only such combination in Canada. Place Viger was designed by Bruce Price for the Canadian Pacific Railway, was built near what was the central core of Montreal, in proximity to the financial district, the city hall, the port and the court house; the mayor of Montreal, Raymond Préfontaine encouraged its construction in an area central to the French Canadian élites, in contrast to the rival Windsor Hotel to the west, perceived to cater to the city's anglophone classes. The rail station served as the terminus of the CP passenger rail lines running into downtown Montreal from the north and east, it replaced. Its counterpart terminus for CP passenger rail lines running into downtown Montreal from the south and west was Windsor Station.
Constructed in the French château-style common to railway hotels built by the Canadian Pacific, Place Viger housed the railway station in its lower levels and a luxurious hotel on the upper floors. Place Viger enjoyed an enviable setting adjacent to the gardens of Viger Square, allowing both railway travellers and hotel guests to stroll along the garden paths; the shifting of Montreal's commercial core to the north-west, the onset of the economic depression of the 1930s, proved disastrous for Place Viger. The hotel closed in 1935. In 1951, the railway station was closed, the building was sold to the City of Montreal; the interiors were gutted and transformed into nondescript office space, the building was renamed Édifice Jacques-Viger. The Viger Square gardens were destroyed in the 1970s to allow for the construction of the Autoroute Ville-Marie highway. After the highway was completed, although a new Viger Square was created on the concrete deck covering the highway, it was poorly designed and underused, despite sculptural works by artists including Charles Daudelin.
For decades, the old Place Viger station sat isolated and neglected, a striking historic building surrounded by parking lots and concrete. In 2003, the Commission scolaire de Montréal, the City of Montreal and the Quebec provincial government announced that Place Viger would house a new École des métiers du tourisme. In 2004, the Borough of Ville-Marie announced that it would restore what remains of the nearby public gardens, by replacing much of the concrete in Viger Square with trees and other soft landscaping. Place Viger was sold in 2005 to a developer who intended to convert the building to apartments and a new hotel. However, the developer suffered financial difficulties and resold the property in 2012. In May 2014, the new owner, real estate developer Jesta along with partners, announced a $250 million mixed-use redevelopment plan for the complex, including residential and office space. In September of that same year, software provider Lightspeed announced that it would be moving its Montreal offices to the Viger complex.
Lightspeed moved in Viger castle in April 2015. Brasseur de Montreal opened one of its brewpub restaurants in the Berri street wing of the Viger complex in April 2015. Commission scolaire de Montréal - Le château du tourisme 1908 article in La Patrie announcing construction of annex Interior view of Place Viger, May 2007 Redevelopment of Gare Viger - First phase nearing completion as Lightspeed and Brasseur de Montréal take up residence
Media related to Jasper Park Lodge at Wikimedia Commons
