Building the Canadian Pacific Railway

In History we have been learning about the building of the CPR, a railway which was built across the country and helped to secure and open up the Canadian West for settlement. We have learned about the many challenges in building the railway, including blasting through solid rock and spanning dangerous river valleys. Chinese workers were hired to work do some of the most dangerous jobs in building the British Columbia stretch of the line. They were lowered down cliff faces in baskets to set dynamite charges and many died. Many others survived the dangerous work and poor living conditions in the camps, to eventually settle in Canada and start businesses.