Description: RailroadTreasures offers the following item: Last Spike, The Great Railway 1881-1885 Canadian Pacific DJ Berton The Last Spike The Great Railway 1881-1885 Canadian Pacific By Pierre Berton DUST JACKET 1971 478 Pages HARD COVER WITH DUST JACKET In the four years between 1881 and 1885 Canada was forged into one nation by the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The Last Spike reconstructs this turbulent period. Here is the full incredible story of how some two thousand miles of steel was Hung across a continent in just five years - exactly half the time stipulated in the contract; the adventures that were part of this vast undertaking, the railway on the brink of bankruptcy, with one hour between it and ruin; the extraordinary land boom of Winnipeg in 1881-82; and the epic tale of how William Van Horne rushed three thousand soldiers over a half-finished railway to quell the Riel Rebellion. Here is the account of more than seven thousand pigtailed Chinese toiling and dying in the canyons of the Fraser, employed by Andrew Onderdonk who, without the cheap coolie labour, could probably not have completed his contract. The scenes shift in dramatic fashion - from Montreal, where a harassed George Stephen came close to a nervous breakdown as his company's financial problems worsened; to Lake Superior, where an army of workers was blasting its way through the world's oldest rock; and westward to the mountains, where Major A. B. Rogers was desperately trying to find a pass in the apparently impassable rampart of the Selkirks. Berton relates the earliest days of half a dozen Canadian cities: Sudbury, Brandon, Regina, Calgary, Revelstoke, and Vancouver. But dominating the whole saga are the men who made it all possible - a host of astonishing characters: Van Home, the most versatile immigrant Canada has ever known; Rogers, the eccentric surveyor; Onderdonk, the cool New Yorker; Stephen, the most emotional of businessmen. Then there were intriguing minor figures on the scene such as Father Lacombe, the black-robed voyageur; Sam Steele, of the North West Mounted Police; Gabriel Dumont, the Prince of the Prairies; and many more -land sharks, construction geniuses, politicians, and entrepreneurs - all of whom played a role in the founding of the new Canada west of Ontario. This is the eagerly awaited sequel to Berton's best-selling The National Dream and, although it reads like a novel, it once again has been written from primary sources - unpublished manuscripts, diaries, letters, public documents, and newspapers. All pictures are of the actual item. If this is a railroad item, this material is obsolete and no longer in use by the railroad. Please email with questions. Publishers of Train Shed Cyclopedias and Stephans Railroad Directories. Large inventory of railroad books and magazines. Thank you for buying from us. Shipping charges Postage rates quoted are for shipments to the US only. Ebay Global shipping charges are shown. These items are shipped to Kentucky and then ebay ships them to you. Ebay collects the shipping and customs / import fees. For direct postage rates to these countries, send me an email. Shipping to Canada and other countries varies by weight. Payment options Payment must be received within 10 days. Paypal is accepted. Terms and conditions All sales are final. Returns accepted if item is not as described. Contact us first. No warranty is stated or implied. Please e-mail us with any questions before bidding. Thanks for looking at our items.
Price: 9.49 USD
Location: Talbott, Tennessee
End Time: 2025-01-22T20:58:18.000Z
Shipping Cost: 6 USD
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Return shipping will be paid by: Buyer
All returns accepted: Returns Accepted
Item must be returned within: 30 Days
Refund will be given as: Money back or replacement (buyer's choice)
