REVELSTOKE RAILWAY MUSEUM CELEBRATES 30TH ANNIVERSARY

THE LONG AND COLOURFUL HISTORY OF ONE OF REVELSTOKE’S CULTURAL CORNERSTONES

By Connor Arsenault

Take one look around the Revelstoke Railway Museum and it isn’t hard to see why it’s hailed as one of the best small railway museums in Canada. The museum features tons of interpretive displays, a wide variety of rolling stock outside and the crown jewel resting inside: steam locomotive 5468. Revelstoke as a town owes its very existence to the railway, originally beginning as an outpost on the transcontinental railway line in the late 1800s. These mountains around us are home to some of the most lively history to do with the railway, and the Revelstoke Railway Museum serves to preserve the valuable knowledge and artefacts associated with the birth of our mountain town.

Since the grand opening on June 16, 1993, over half a million people have come to visit the museum and learn about the importance and influence of the railway on the history of Revelstoke. On the anniversary of the grand opening this year, there was a big event commemorating how far the museum has come. Attended by some of the founders of the museum, the mayor and local RCMP, there were many speeches, stories and conviviality. The celebrations also recognized updates to the museum including new washrooms, an elevator and new accessible doors.

The Revelstoke Mountaineer had the opportunity to chat about the museum and the significance of the 30th anniversary with the museum’s Executive Director, Jim Cullen and long-time railway historian and author Doug Mayer. It turns out the Railway Museum has a pretty epic origin story. First conceived at Expo 86 by a bunch of railway aficionados, the idea came to get a steam locomotive that had worked in Revelstoke to put on display and to create a museum around it.

It was discovered that the Canadian Railway Museum in Montreal had one of these locomotives in their collection and a group of local guys led by Ernie Ottewell made their way out east to get this locomotive and bring it back home to Revelstoke. A year long saga full of trials and tribulations ensued and crowds of people flocked to see this “iron dinosaur” all along the route back to Revelstoke. When talking about it, Cullen said: “It’s kind of a miracle that we have this locomotive.”

These days, there are a multitude of other displays inside the museum, including the original Revelstoke train station sign that our city’s current branding is modeled after. Spoiler alert: it did include the period after the word Revelstoke. If you look in just the right light you can see where it’s been painted over.

Out in the yard there’s a few noteworthy railway cars including diesel locomotive number 5500, which is the first 3000 horsepower diesel locomotive that Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) started using and the great-grandparent of the current locomotives you see powering the trains that rumble through town. Also on display are two snowplows, which as you can imagine play a key role in the history of the railway in these mountains. Behind one of the snowplows is a super interesting-looking machine called a spreader. This is essentially like a road grader, but for the railway and it looks like something straight out of Mad Max.

One of the fan favourites in the yard is the well-preserved caboose. You can even go inside and check it out. The subject of many songs and even children’s story books, the caboose has definitely gone down in history and earned itself an enduring place in the public consciousness.

“If you were a martian coming down from Mars to study Canadian railways, you would conclude it was all about the cabooses,”Cullen joked.

Inside the museum you’ll find the scaled down versions of all the railway cars outside. Revelstoke’s model railway layout is a sight to behold and highlights all of the important landmarks along our section of the railway. It’s very detailed, even down to little woodland animals hiding in the forest.

The museum is also happy about their new exhibit: Revelstoke is a Railway Town. With this new exhibit, the museum is aiming to rekindle pride in the local railway history, and act as a gateway for visitors to the region.

“We have a lot of new people coming into Revelstoke… the nature of our community is changing. We have a choice, we can become another Whistler or Canmore, or we can retain some of our wonderful originality,”Cullen said about the new exhibit.

The exhibit’s storyline really focuses on the social history of the railway here in Revelstoke, which Doug Mayer said had an impact on all community members.

“There was a time when everybody had something to do with the railway in Revelstoke, because there was no Trans-Canada highway,” Mayer said. “Everything you got came on the railway. You need a new refrigerator; it comes on the railway. You pick it up at the freight yard. You can’t be a Revelstokian and not have some knowledge of how we got here.”

Perhaps the biggest influence the railway has had on present-day Revelstoke is putting Revelstoke on the map. William Van Horne, who was general manager of CPR while the railway was being completed in the west, famously said, “If we can’t export the scenery, we’ll import the tourists.”

Many luxurious hotels were built along the railway line that facilitated the arrival of tourists in this region, including Glacier House in Roger’s Pass. Countless tourists came to visit these mountains and Swiss guides were even brought in to popularize mountaineering in Canada.

Throughout the era of the passenger train, Glacier House was a very popular place.

“I think that set in motion the basis for the tourism business that we enjoy today,” Cullen said. “Tourism isn’t some new thing here. We even had a CPR hotel in Revelstoke, up on the hill behind the station.”

One uncommon area of this valley’s history has become a big focus for Cullen.

“I am on a journey of decolonizing the museum.”

Recognizing the importance of honouring and involving Indigenous people in the telling of this story, Cullen is working to build relationships with First Nations representatives, with the intention of co-creating the representation of the story of the railway.

Just as the railway changed everything for colonialists, it also changed everything for the native peoples who had been inhabiting these valleys for thousands of years prior to the arrival of the first white man and the “discovery” of these valleys and passes.

Over time, the galleries and activities of the museum will integrate with the First Nation’s story. The museum is one of the first railway museums in the country to take an active role in this. By partnering with the Indigenous

Friendship Society of Revelstoke and hosting events and classes led by Indigenous educators about colonization and decolonization, the Revelstoke Railway Museum is using their agency to lead the way on reconciliation among Canadian Railway Museums.

Looking forward, the museum is excited to be hosting Luna Rail, formerly known as Railway Day, their hallmark event, on Sunday Sep. 24. At this oneday family event, there will be railway themed activities, entertainment and demonstrations. This year, they’re teaming up with Luna fest, so expect big things and a lot of fun.

As part of the 30th anniversary, the museum is also holding a fundraiser to restore their diesel locomotive number 5500. This locomotive has been designated “outstanding significance of national importance,” and represents a landmark in the technology of railways. It is in need of an overhaul, and the museum is accepting donations for this cause in person and online.

If you’re looking to get a railway history fix and have some fun ogling timeless artefacts, make sure to get out and visit the Revelstoke Railway Museum this summer. They’re open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., seven days a week.