1. Discuss the push-pull factor that brought railway workers from Ireland, China and Eastern Europe.

2. Explain why there were no Chinese women living or working in the construction camps.

3. Tell what happened to the thousands of Chinese who had to find work after the completion of the railway.

4. Listen to Gordon Lightfoot’s “Canadian Railroad Trilogy” and retell the song in your own words.

5. Watch Pierre Berton’s video series, The National Dream, on the building of the CPR.

6. Read the book, Lords of the Line, and write short biographies of Donald Smith, William Van Horne, Andrew Onderdonk, or Sanford Fleming.

7. Visit Craigellachie, where the last spike was driven.

8. Describe the role played by the survey engineers in determining the route to be followed by the CPR through Eagle Pass.

9. Explain the contribution by the steamer, Skuzzy, in the construction of the Fraser Canyon section of the railway.

10. Visit the Roundhouse Community Centre in Vancouver to see Engine 374, the locomotive that pulled the first transcontinental train to reach the west coast on May 23, 1887.

Canadian Pacific Railway
Chinese Workers
Working Conditions
Song: Drill, Ye Tarriers, Drill
Learning Activities
Extension and Research Activities
Resource List