Site of the Bytown-Prescott Railway
Written by Bytown Museum
on
03/Dec/2009
In the late 1840s, local residents began promoting Bytown as a potential capital of Canada. At the time, railways were becoming popular in the country and a rail connection was essential for Bytown to be considered as the future capital.
In 1850, the Bytown and Prescott Railway was officially incorporated, with a plan to run a rail line from the town of Prescott north to Bytown. When financial difficulties halted the progress of the line, Thomas MacKay, a major stockholder, agreed to bail out the project, provided that the line run through his industrial complex in New Edinburgh.
The first train operating on the new rail line reached New Edinburgh on Christmas Day in 1854. The first train came into Bytown the following summer after a bridge was built to bring the railway across the Rideau River. That same year, Bytown changed its name to Ottawa, and just two years later, Ottawa was selected as the capital of Canada.
The Bytown and Prescott Railway company shut down in 1864 and the Grand Trunk Railway purchased the line.
Did you know that, due to a lack of funds, hardwood rails capped with strips of iron were used as the rail line approached its northern terminal?
