Rail Innovations - The Canadian (1955) (VHS) 

Back when people had class and manners and traveled together in harmony

As a former CN employee, I never rode the Canadian (enemy territory y'know 🙂). However, I often rode the CN equivalent, the Supercontinental. I first rode it in 1974, when I took it from Toronto to Vancouver and back on my vacation. As an employee, my basic coach fare was covered, but I had to pay for my sleeper. I had a berth both ways, with meals included with my ticket. The next year, I started working out of Capreol. Back then I was a technician with CN Telecommunications and in my work traveled extensively over much of Ontario. However, in Northern Ontario, I frequently traveled on trains, often freights, along the CN main line between Capreol and Armstrong. In fact, I was on the Super so often the conductors stopped asking me for my pass. Back in those days, there were separate Supercontinental trains for Toronto and Montreal during the summer, but they were combined at Capreol in the winter months. When my co-workers and I went for coffee in the morning, we'd have to pass through the train to get to the restaurant across the street from the station. There was also one weekend, when I took the Super from Armstrong on Friday night to Winnipeg, returning to work on Monday morning. I saw the first Star Wars movie in Winnipeg that weekend. For a guy who has long been a rail fan, this was a dream job!

I was very fortunate to have worked on this train as a trainman, baggageman and assistant conductor during its early Via Rail days. Via Rail dropped the formal 'The' and called it the 'Canadian'; still do. Great train and great memories!

Rode this lovely train summer, 1971. I was a 10 year old with my grandparents. Drove up from Seattle to Vancouver. We had the only 3 bed room on the train, in the dome car at the end. It was huge. (At least it seemed so!) those coaches were unique, and were named after provincial parks, known as the Park Series. Ours was called “Kootenay Park” We rode from Vancouver to Montreal and back. I’ll never forget that trip. I couldn’t appreciate it until years later. Some beautiful country up there. Amtrak blows, I’ve traveled it, not impressed. I think VIA is maybe in the same league.

What a fantastic time document and great scenery of old Canada. A pitty that this times gone bye. My greatest wish is to travel like this some day through all of Canada the Transcontinental way by train. Thanks for upploading this great video.

Took a train twice as a kid through the Rockies, it's one of my best memories.

Great video. I travelled on the Canadian as a 4 year old with my parents from Calgary to Banff. Unforgettable trip and still have some cine films of the trip.

Great video! The nice thing about the Canadian today is that there are showers. The drawback to today's Canadian is that it does not hug the north shore of Lake Superior, one the most beautiful parts of the country. Shame.

Took this trip on the Canadian from Toronto to Vancouver RT when I was a teenager...unforgettable!

"Three days from Montreal to Vancouver." Fast foreard SEVEN DECADES and it takes AT LEAST four days from Toronto. Which is over 300 miles closer to Vancouver than Montreal is. And Via is using the same rolling stock

So this trip used to take 3 days and 2 nights and cost about a week's wage. Nowadays on VIA it takes 4 days and 3 nights and costs you an arm, leg, and your firstborn. Progress.

5:49 FP7 1418 is still around, preserved in Medicine Hat.

What a streamliner it was!

And still in use today

I'm a model train collector in a modeling Canadian Pacific between 1949 and 1953 the Dominion

This Historical treasure is from a time when Canada had a Vision and a sense of Purpose - something that has been lost since. It indeed took Vision for Mr. Krump, then CEO of the CPR, to get his Company to invest in this system, although rail passenger service was then, and will always by, losing "money". One can imagine the even more pitiful state that Canadian Rail Passenger System would now be in if this had not been done then.

Thank you so much was looking for this video for years now the CP Rail was the first with 'The Canadian' the scenery was extraordinary and by far superior to Via Rail. I Been on that train from Montreal about 4 time and the last time i had to come back my Via Rail and was left hungry for beautiful scenery. I whish they could make it possible to go by one way and come back the other so visitor could really see the Beauty in this country it would be Amazing for the traveller to see the Spiral Tunnel and to go around the great lake the view is breath takinIf you find any more PLEASE post themGilles G

I’m old enough and lucky enough to have traveled on this train many times just too bad they don’t go back to it

That’s cool😮❤

Thankyou for uploading this. I find it odd that the CPR did not specifically showcase the different sleeping accommodations on board: section berths, roomettes, bedrooms, and drawing rooms.

It’s interesting that you can see the U series cars a number of times in the film, yet their features are never mentioned. I’m guessing the dressing up was only done on the outside for them.

That was amazing!

Very nice video about the train! I wonder if it had a steam generator car in there. I had taken the Canadian in the 80s, the blue and yellow cars, lol but we slept in the roomettes and had a fantastic time. You still could smoke anywhere in those days, haha and just another tid bit of info, my mom was a room cleaner at the Banff springs hotel in the 50s too! She really enjoyed that job!

I finally found it! Thanks a bunch!

Coloured porters too

I rode The Canadian (her sister train was The Dominion). CN's transcontinental trains were the Super Continental and the Continental. The Ottawa station has been moved to the eastern suburbs and the original station is now the Confederation Conference Centre. The original rail line beside thw Rideau Canal is now a bike trail. Having a train station in the suburbs doesn't make a lot of sense. Waking up near Sault Ste. Marie and spending the day travelling beside Lale Superior was just as scenic as the trip through the Rockies. Unfortunately the CP line is now only dedicated to freight-except for the Rocky Mountaineer between Banff and Vancouver. The CN line runs further north through Kenora and Edmonton...still scenic but not like the CP line. You should watch the weekly TV show "Rocky Mountain Rail". It follows various freight trains through the Rockies-and also Northern Ontario.

Good old days.

That is a big train, 18 to 20 passenger cars.

Unfortunately, the people who made films like this no longer seem to exist?

nowadays it's like $450 for a train trip and $1.27 for a cheeseburger when it cost a helluva lot less back then.

Is this available in dvd?

Nice, back when women dressed like women ☺️

Typical..Between Winnipeg and Calgary there's nothing but grain elevators and wheat fields. I was really hoping for a glimpse of a 1955 Saskatoon - or whatever city The Canadian travelled through in Sask. back then - but....Cities in Saskatchewan wouldn't fit "the narrative" I guess. Oh well.