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Follow <i>Rails to the Atlantic</i> through eastern Canada’s railway heritage. Visit preserved railway stations in various states of use, or take in the architecture of the grand era of station building in Quebec City, Halifax, and St. John’s. Board scenic railway excursions on the Orford Express or Le Train du Massif de Charlevoix, or travel to VIA Rail's destinations in remote northern Quebec. <br/> <br/>
Rail trails lead through the Laurentian mountains and Quebec’s Eastern Townships. Museums exhibit Newfoundland’s colourful railway heritage, while Canada’s largest railway equipment display lies near Montreal. Magnificent railway hotels include the Fairmont Le Château Montebello and the Algonquin Resort, as well as the stunning Chateau-style station hotel at McAdam, New Brunswick. Often forgotten are the railway bridges and trestles, stunning feats of engineering that stretch across wide valleys and churning rivers, the construction of which sometimes led to deadly consequences. Lesser-known attractions, such as roundhouses and employee housing, are profiled to help bring the railway era back to life.

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Follow the evolution of the rail legacy of the Canadian Prairies from the arrival of the first engine on a barge to today’s realities. Rails Across the Prairies traces the evolution of Canada’s rail network, including the appearance of the first steam engine on the back of a barge. The book looks at the arrival of European settlers before the railway and examines how they coped by using ferry services on the Assiniboine and North Saskatchewan Rivers. The work then follows the building of the railways, the rivalries of their owners, and the unusual irrigation works of Canadian Pacific Railway. The towns were nearly all the creation of the railways from their layout to their often unusual names. Eventually, the rail lines declined, though many are experiencing a limited revival. Learn what the heritage lover can still see of the Prairies’ railway legacy, including existing rail operations and the stories the railways brought with them. Many landmarks lie vacant, including ghost towns and elevators, while many others survive as museums or interpretative sites.

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The Lake Erie shoreline has born witness to some of Ontario's earliest history, yet remains largely unspoiled. Much of the area's natural features – the wetlands, the Carolinian forests – and its built heritage – fishing ports and military ramparts – provide much of interest for vistors to the region. Ron Brown has traversed this most southern coast line in Ontario, fleshing out forgotten stories of the past, from accounts of the world's largest freshwater fishing fleet, War of 1812 skirmishes, links with the Underground Railroad, forgotten outposts and canals, the introduction of wineries, and the legacy of the many appealing towns and villages that hug the shoreline.

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Brown celebrates the survival of our railway heritage in stations that have been saved or remain in use. 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 lifelines, and the station the social centre. Here was where we worked, played, listened to political speeches, or simply said goodbye to loved ones. The landscapes that 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 that ranged in style from chateauesque 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 that have been saved or 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.

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Whether you hike, bike, ride the rails, or drive, the shore of Lake Ontario can yield a treasure trove of heritage sites and natural beauty – if you know where to look. Travel with Ron Brown as he probes the shoreline of the Canadian side of Lake Ontario to discover its hidden heritage. Explore «ghost ports,» forgotten coves, historical lighthouses, rumrunning lore, and even the location of a top-secret spy camp. The area also contains some unusual natural features, including a mysterious mountain-top lake, sand dunes, and the rare albars of Prince Edward County. From small communities to the megacity of Toronto, history lives on in the buildings, bridges, canals, rail lines, and homes that have survived, and in the stories, both well-known and long-forgotten, of the people and places no longer here. In From Queenston to Kingston , Ron Brown provides today's explorer's with a window into Ontario's not so distant past and shares a hope that, in future, progress and historical preservation go hand in hand.

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