Centre Acadien, Université Sainte-Anne

Railroads in Clare – It would be fair to say that the Age of Railways completely transformed economic life in Clare, as it did in so many other parts of the country.

In the Confederation era, the construction of railroads in Nova Scotia was still in its infancy, although individuals and commercial enterprises could see the benefits of this mode of transportation for both personal travel and for the transportation of raw materials and manufactured goods. A group of businessmen from Yarmouth founded the Western Counties Railway, which was incorporated on April 18, 1870, to serve southwestern Nova Scotia, including Clare.

The decision of where to run the railway within Clare was not without controversy – some favouring a shore route, others favouring an inland route. With the forest industry at its peak, the inland route won out. Work began on the Clare sections of the route in 1874; the Yarmouth to Digby section was completed in 1879. By 1889, one could go from Yarmouth to Halifax by rail.

In 1893, Western Counties Railway was amalgamated with the Dominion Atlantic Railway (DAR); after 1914, the DAR was purchased by Canadian Pacific, linking southwestern Nova Scotia, including Clare, to the rest of Canada by rail.

The result was that, by 1879, all communities within Clare, including remote, inland ones, had access to commercial markets locally and beyond. Some have observed that those remote communities had better access to commercial goods than those along the coast. More importantly, the railroad provided a means of transporting raw materials to the shipbuilding communities along the coast.

The photo featured here shows the construction of a railroad bridge in Clare.

Topic: Commercial Enterprises and other livelihoods

Date: [ca. 1880]

Reference: Harold Robichaud Collection Centre Acadien Series A, photo 4

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