Canadian Pacific Railway Station - Nelson, BC
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member ScroogieII
N 49° 29.361 W 117° 18.104
11U E 478147 N 5481900
Built in 1900, Nelson's CPR station was designated a Historic Railway Station on April 6th, 1992 by Parks Canada.
Waymark Code: WM12ZHV
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 08/14/2020
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member Weathervane
Views: 0
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Completed in 1900, in 1910 it was doubled in size to house the headquarters of the B.C. Lake and River Service, as well as railroad operations. The addition made this a large station, reflecting Nelson's status at that time as a major shipping and transportation hub for the Kootenay region.

In the mid 1950s, the paddlewheelers having become obsolete, the B.C. Lake and River Service was dissolved by the CPR, leaving that half of the building empty. In 1987, with a restructuring of CPR divisional boundaries, the divisional headquarters were moved to Cranbrook, leaving the building empty, as passenger service had already been terminated by that time.

The CPR tracks arrived in Nelson in 1891 and in that year the first station was built, at this location. When, in the late 1890s, Nelson was designated the Kootenay Region Headquarters for the CPR, this station was built to house increased office space and to provide better freight and passenger handling capabilities. Ostensibly, it was opened January 1st, 1900.

In 2016, following a five year wait, the Nelson Visitor Centre finally moved into their new digs in Nelson's newly restored and renovated CPR station. The visitor centre, with an adjoining coffee house, occupies about half of the newly renovated station; the other half was to be occupied by various businesses when further interior renovations were completed. Larger than their original premises, the centre houses all the information brochures, booklets and maps one would expect to encounter, not to mention the same helpful and friendly group we have come to know in the old centre. In the middle of the visitor centre is a model of the station and surrounding railroad facilities as they would have been in the 1950s. Beautifully restored with lots of wood and exposed posts and beams, the centre even retains the old wide board flooring style from the station, though probably only replicated, not original. Nelson now has a visitor centre they can truly be proud of.

Visit Nelson via Waymarking.
Canadian Pacific Railway Station
DESCRIPTION OF HISTORIC PLACE
The Canadian Pacific Railway Station at Nelson is a two-storey, wood-frame, railway station, built in 1900. It is located near the lakefront, at the foot of the main thoroughfare, on the edge of the city of Nelson. The formal recognition is confined to the railway station building itself.

HERITAGE VALUE
The Canadian Pacific Railway Station (CPR) at Nelson reflects the city’s role at the end of the 19th century as a major transportation centre for the mining industry in British Columbia’s southern interior. The station served as a crucial meeting point between rail and steamboat transportation. The station also represents the CPR’s commitment to compete with American railway interests in the southern interior.

The Nelson station is a good example of the picturesque aesthetic applied to a railway station. It is a substantial structure with complex massing and rich detailing. The station’s wood construction reflects the local abundance of that material, and perhaps, the CPR’s doubts as to the permanence of the mining community. The subsequent additions have not diminished the legibility of the original station.

The station maintains a high profile in the community and is considered an important historical resource.

CHARACTER-DEFINING ELEMENTS
Character-defining elements of the Canadian Pacific Railway Station at Nelson include:
-its picturesque aesthetic, as expressed in its prominent hipped roof, projecting bays, bracketed canopy, profusion of dormers and variety of finishes
-its horizontal massing, broken by large, projecting bays ending in hipped and gabled dormers on both street and track sides
-its large size
-its roofline, consisting of a prominent hip roof enlivened with a profusion of gabled, hipped and shed-roofed dormers on all four sides
-the wide-eaved platform canopy, supported on slender brackets, which surrounds the building on three sides and reinforces its horizontal form
-the 1910 addition to the west, which continues the hip-roofed form and shed dormers and is harmonious in style and materials
-its Shingle-style detailing, including: clapboard sheathing; and half-timbering and stucco accents in the gable dormers
-its abundant fenestration, consisting of: single, paired and tripled sash windows in a variety of arrangements, including bay windows on one of the projecting bays.
-surviving original wood windows, with multi-paned upper sash
-its wood construction.
From Historic Places Canada
Photo goes Here Photo goes Here
Photo goes Here Photo goes Here
Official Heritage Registry: [Web Link]

Address:
90 Baker Street
Nelson, BC
V1L 4G9

Heritage Registry Page Number: Not listed
Visit Instructions:
To log a visit to a Waymark in this category at least one photo of the property, taken by the visitor, must be included with the visit, as well any comments they have concerning either their visit or the site itself. Suggested inclusions are: what you like about the site, its history, any deviations from the description in the heritage listing noted by the visitor, and the overall state of repair of the site.
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