Inverness and Richmond Railway
Encyclopedia
The Inverness and Richmond Railway (I&R) is a historic Canadian
railway that operated on Cape Breton Island
in Nova Scotia
.
The I&R traces its history to 1874 when the Inverness Railway Company was incorporated, changing its name to the Inverness Coal Field and Railway Company in 1875 and to the Inverness Coal, Iron and Railway Company in 1886.
The economically tumultuous conditions of the coal industry in Inverness County was evident as these various railway charters appeared and disappeared. The growth of the Sydney Coal Field and the establishment of the coal and steel industry in what would become Industrial Cape Breton
during the late 19th century only made the future of the Inverness mines more uncertain.
The I&R was incorporated in 1887 with a charter to build a railway line from the district of Margaree in north-central Inverness County to the ports of Mabou
, Port Hood
and Port Hawkesbury
, along with a branch to the Bras d'Or Lake
port of Whycocomagh
.
and Sir Donald Mann
who were expanding their Canadian Northern Railway
(CNoR) system across Canada.
The I&R was built from Inverness Junction (at the south end of Port Hawkesbury) on the Intercolonial Railway's Point Tupper
-Sydney
mainline 60.5 miles north along the coast of the Northumberland Strait
to Inverness. The line opened on June 15, 1901 to serve coal mines in Inverness and Mabou which were owned by the CNoR. Local proponents had wished the I&R to continue building north from Inverness to Cheticamp
, however it would never venture beyond the mines at Inverness. Also, despite its name, the line would also never extend into Richmond County
.
The I&R hauled coal from mines in Inverness and Mabou to a coal wharf in Mabou during the summer shipping season and to a coal wharf in Port Hastings
during the winter season when sea ice
made Mabou inaccessible.
The assets of the I&R, along with those of the Inverness-Richmond Collieries and Railway Company of Canada, were consolidated by the CNoR to become the Inverness Railway and Coal Company (IR&C).
and the IR&C defaulted on interest payments for its debt on May 1, 1915. The IR&C was placed in receivership under the National Trust Company and continued to operate the coal mines and railway much as before. On June 23, 1919 the Eastern Trust Company took over as receiver.
The IR&C saw the mines spun off by the receivers over the years and the coal loading port at Port Hastings
declined in use.
In 1955, the construction of the Canso Causeway
saw the original I&R line from Inverness Junction in Port Hawkesbury to Port Hastings upgraded and realigned to become part of the Truro
-Sydney
mainline of the CNR. A new junction for the I&R line was created immediately east of the Canso Canal Bridge
.
Today the line is a multi-use recreational rail trail
that is part of the Trans-Canada Trail.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
railway that operated on Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America. It likely corresponds to the word Breton, the French demonym for Brittany....
in Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
.
The I&R traces its history to 1874 when the Inverness Railway Company was incorporated, changing its name to the Inverness Coal Field and Railway Company in 1875 and to the Inverness Coal, Iron and Railway Company in 1886.
The economically tumultuous conditions of the coal industry in Inverness County was evident as these various railway charters appeared and disappeared. The growth of the Sydney Coal Field and the establishment of the coal and steel industry in what would become Industrial Cape Breton
Industrial Cape Breton
Industrial Cape Breton is a geographic region in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. It refers to the eastern portion of Cape Breton County fronting the Atlantic Ocean on the southeastern part of Cape Breton Island.-Geography:...
during the late 19th century only made the future of the Inverness mines more uncertain.
The I&R was incorporated in 1887 with a charter to build a railway line from the district of Margaree in north-central Inverness County to the ports of Mabou
Mabou, Nova Scotia
Mabou -Mȧbu is a small Canadian rural community located in Inverness County on the west coast of Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Island. The population in 2001 was 1,289 residents....
, Port Hood
Port Hood, Nova Scotia
Port Hood is a seaside community on the west coast of Cape Breton Island and the shire town of Inverness County, Nova Scotia, Canada. Local residents are predominantly English-speaking Roman Catholics, the population core having Highland Scottish ancestry; MacDonalds/MacDonnells mostly...
and Port Hawkesbury
Port Hawkesbury, Nova Scotia
-Historical residents:*Henry Nicholas Paint , member of Parliament for Richmond county, merchant and land owner. His family received land grants at Belle Vue on the Strait of Canso in 1817 and at Point Tupper in 1863, and did much to develop the local communities in the area.*Arthur John Langley ...
, along with a branch to the Bras d'Or Lake
Bras d'Or Lake
Bras d'Or Lake is a large body of salt water dominating the centre of Cape Breton Island in the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. Bras d'Or Lake is sometimes referred to as the Bras d'Or Lakes or the Bras d'Or Lakes system, however its official geographic name is Bras d'Or Lake as it is a singular...
port of Whycocomagh
Whycocomagh, Nova Scotia
Whycocomagh is a small Canadian rural community in the province of Nova Scotia. The population in 2001 was 854 residents. It is located on the eastern edge of Inverness County in the central part of Cape Breton Island. The community sits on the northwestern shore of St. Patrick's Channel, an arm...
.
Acquisition by Canadian Northern Railway
Construction of the I&R line finally began in the late 1890s after the company was acquired by Sir William MackenzieWilliam Mackenzie (railway entrepreneur)
Sir William Mackenzie was a Canadian railway contractor and entrepreneur.Born near Peterborough, Ontario, Mackenzie became a teacher and politician before entering business as the owner of a sawmill and gristmill in Kirkfield, Ontario...
and Sir Donald Mann
Donald Mann
Sir Donald Mann was a Canadian railway contractor and entrepreneur.Born at Acton, Ontario, Mann studied as a Methodist minister but worked in lumber camps in Ontario and Michigan before moving to Winnipeg, Manitoba...
who were expanding their Canadian Northern Railway
Canadian Northern Railway
The Canadian Northern Railway is a historic Canadian transcontinental railway. At its demise in 1923, when it was merged into the Canadian National Railway , the CNoR owned a main line between Quebec City and Vancouver via Ottawa, Winnipeg, and Edmonton.-Manitoba beginnings:CNoR had its start in...
(CNoR) system across Canada.
The I&R was built from Inverness Junction (at the south end of Port Hawkesbury) on the Intercolonial Railway's Point Tupper
Point Tupper, Nova Scotia
Point Tupper is a small rural community located in Richmond County, Nova Scotia on the Strait of Canso in western Cape Breton Island.-History:...
-Sydney
Sydney, Nova Scotia
Sydney is a Canadian urban community in the province of Nova Scotia. It is situated on the east coast of Cape Breton Island and is administratively part of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality....
mainline 60.5 miles north along the coast of the Northumberland Strait
Northumberland Strait
The Northumberland Strait is a strait in the southern part of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence in eastern Canada...
to Inverness. The line opened on June 15, 1901 to serve coal mines in Inverness and Mabou which were owned by the CNoR. Local proponents had wished the I&R to continue building north from Inverness to Cheticamp
Chéticamp, Nova Scotia
Chéticamp is a fishing community on the Cabot Trail on the west coast of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia at the western entrance to Cape Breton Highlands National Park. The downtown area overlooks a large bay, into which the Chéticamp River flows, that is protected from the Gulf of Saint Lawrence...
, however it would never venture beyond the mines at Inverness. Also, despite its name, the line would also never extend into Richmond County
Richmond County, Nova Scotia
Richmond County is a county in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia.-History:Named in honour of Sir Charles Lennox, 4th Duke of Richmond and Lennox, who was Governor General of British North America 1818-1819, Richmond County was created in 1835....
.
The I&R hauled coal from mines in Inverness and Mabou to a coal wharf in Mabou during the summer shipping season and to a coal wharf in Port Hastings
Port Hastings, Nova Scotia
Port Hastings is a Canadian rural community in Inverness County, Nova Scotia.The community is located at the eastern end of the Canso Causeway on Cape Breton Island.-History:The community was previously known as Plaster Cove....
during the winter season when sea ice
Sea ice
Sea ice is largely formed from seawater that freezes. Because the oceans consist of saltwater, this occurs below the freezing point of pure water, at about -1.8 °C ....
made Mabou inaccessible.
The assets of the I&R, along with those of the Inverness-Richmond Collieries and Railway Company of Canada, were consolidated by the CNoR to become the Inverness Railway and Coal Company (IR&C).
Bankruptcy
The CNoR entered financial difficulty during World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and the IR&C defaulted on interest payments for its debt on May 1, 1915. The IR&C was placed in receivership under the National Trust Company and continued to operate the coal mines and railway much as before. On June 23, 1919 the Eastern Trust Company took over as receiver.
The IR&C saw the mines spun off by the receivers over the years and the coal loading port at Port Hastings
Port Hastings, Nova Scotia
Port Hastings is a Canadian rural community in Inverness County, Nova Scotia.The community is located at the eastern end of the Canso Causeway on Cape Breton Island.-History:The community was previously known as Plaster Cove....
declined in use.
Acquisition by Canadian National Railway
The remaining railway line from Inverness Junction in Port Hawkesbury to Inverness was leased to the federal government's Crown corporation Canadian National Railways (CNR) from February 1, 1924 until June 1929. That month saw the line purchased outright by CNR. TheIn 1955, the construction of the Canso Causeway
Canso Causeway
The Canso Causeway is a rock-fill causeway in Nova Scotia, Canada.The causeway crosses the Strait of Canso, connecting Cape Breton Island by road to the Nova Scotia peninsula...
saw the original I&R line from Inverness Junction in Port Hawkesbury to Port Hastings upgraded and realigned to become part of the Truro
Truro, Nova Scotia
-Education:Truro has one high school, Cobequid Educational Centre. Post-secondary options include a campus of the Nova Scotia Community College, as well as the Nova Scotia Agricultural College in the neighboring town of Bible Hill.- Sports :...
-Sydney
Sydney, Nova Scotia
Sydney is a Canadian urban community in the province of Nova Scotia. It is situated on the east coast of Cape Breton Island and is administratively part of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality....
mainline of the CNR. A new junction for the I&R line was created immediately east of the Canso Canal Bridge
Canso Canal Bridge
The Canso Canal Bridge is a swing bridge in Nova Scotia, Canada.The bridge is a rotating swing bridge that crosses the Canso Canal at the eastern end of the Canso Causeway...
.
Abandonment
Under CN, the I&R was known as the Inverness Subdivision. By the 1970s, CN applied to abandon the line, citing marginal freight traffic, however the applications were denied by the Canadian Transport Commission. Deregulation of the railway industry in the 1980s saw CN re-apply successfully and the line was fully abandoned from the Canso Causeway to Inverness in 1986 and the rails were removed for scrapping by 1989.Today the line is a multi-use recreational rail trail
Rail trail
A rail trail is the conversion of a disused railway easement into a multi-use path, typically for walking, cycling and sometimes horse riding. The characteristics of former tracks—flat, long, frequently running through historical areas—are appealing for various development. The term sometimes also...
that is part of the Trans-Canada Trail.