Video of the former Grand Trunk Pacific Railway-Lake Superior Division, Canadian Government Railways-Fort William Subdivision, Canadian National Railways-Fort William/Lake Superior/Graham/Raith/Graham Subdivision (MP 25.1-30.2) south of Raith, ON. Features the grade as it parallels the CPKC Kaministiquia Subdivision with a rock cut, cutting, piles of old discarded ties and a special visitor.
Part 2 of 7.
Active, 1908-1994.
Video of the former Grand Trunk Pacific Railway-Lake Superior Division, Canadian Government Railways-Fort William Subdivision, Canadian National Railways-Fort William/Lake Superior/Graham/Raith/Graham Subdivision (MP 25.1-30.2) south of Raith, ON. Features the grade west from Michener-Parry Road as it passes through some swampy areas and a rock cut toward the station at Raith.
Part 1 of 7.
Active, 1908-1994.
Extra Credit is video series that examines topics related to history in the Thunder Bay District and exploring that history.
This unique episode was recorded over Thanksgiving weekend in October 2025. It is a documentation of several days of driving, hiking and exploring of the former Grand Trunk Pacific Lake Superior Division, later CN Graham Subdivision, near Silver Dollar, Ontario. Staying at the Silver Dollar Inn, Luna and I recorded the railway grade from Selwyn Lake to Eva Lake and then some. This was my first attempt at this type of video and with any luck, there will be a Part 2 and 3 as we will be returning to Silver Dollar in the fall of 2026 to resume explorations.
Enjoy!
Then and now photos highlighting an unknown location on the former Grand Trunk Pacific Lake Superior Division/CN Graham Subdivision. This postcard, dated April 1906, states “Construction of Grand Trunk Pacific.” It also bears a message to Mr. and Mrs. Thompson of Tacoma, Washington (address indicated on the back) from Mr. and Mrs. C. Devere Fairchild of “Oskondaga Stn, Savanne, Ont.”
While the date of the photo corresponds with the construction of the GTP in the area, the exact location is a mystery. Savanne was (and still is) a station on the Canadian Pacific Railway (now CPKC) and is likely mentioned as it was the closest community/post office. Oskondaga, which is also a nearby river, was a former station on the line situated between Finmark and Raith (often labelled “Okso”). A short distance to the west, the GTP station known as Horne would eventually be established.
This area is dominated by rocky ridges and ravines of the Canadian Shield, which had to be blasted through and spanned. Almost all of the ravines were subsequently infilled and some given concrete culverts in the late 1910s and early 1920s. With the exact location of the original photo impossible to determine, I picked a place just west of Horne Station. This spot had a concrete culvert that was added in 1919 and rehabilitated in 1983, but most likely a stone or wooden box culvert as well. Whatever that second structure was, it has collapsed since the line was abandoned in 1994, creating a large, lengthy depression in the grade.
Video of the former Grand Trunk Pacific Railway-Lake Superior Division, Canadian Government Railways-Fort William Subdivision, Canadian National Railways-Fort William/Lake Superior/Graham/Raith/Graham Subdivision (MP 19.9-25.1) south of Raith, ON. Features the grade as it parallels the CPKC Kaministiquia Subdivision and passes through a lengthy cutting to Michener-Parry Road. Includes the site of a large ballast pit that was in use circa 1911 to 1915 which is documented on the ground and by drone.
Part 8 of 8.
Active, 1908-1994.
Video of the former Grand Trunk Pacific Railway-Lake Superior Division, Canadian Government Railways-Fort William Subdivision, Canadian National Railways-Fort William/Lake Superior/Graham/Raith/Graham Subdivision (MP 19.9-25.1) south of Raith, ON. Features the grade as it parallels the CPKC Kaministiquia Subdivision and skirts a massive rock ridge with several large rock cuts, a rare segmented concrete culvert and a short concrete bridge that was built in 1960.
Part 7 of 8.
Active, 1908-1994.
Video of the former Grand Trunk Pacific Railway-Lake Superior Division, Canadian Government Railways-Fort William Subdivision, Canadian National Railways-Fort William/Lake Superior/Graham/Raith/Graham Subdivision (MP 19.9-25.1) south of Raith, ON. Features the grade as it parallels the CPKC Kaministiquia Subdivision and skirts a massive rock ridge with a lengthy embankment that crosses over a branch of the Oskondaga River. In 1920, the Carter Halls Aldinger Company of Winnipeg was awarded a $10,700 contact to construct a concrete culvert under the grade.
Part 6 of 8.
Active, 1908-1994.
Video of the former Grand Trunk Pacific Railway-Lake Superior Division, Canadian Government Railways-Fort William Subdivision, Canadian National Railways-Fort William/Lake Superior/Graham/Raith/Graham Subdivision (MP 19.9-25.1) south of Raith, ON. Features the grade as it parallels the CPKC Kaministiquia Subdivision and skirts a massive rock ridge with cuttings and a large rock cut. Includes a lengthy embankment that was at one time likely a trestle and was infilled, but has since developed a considerable sag. In 1919, the Carter Halls Aldinger Company of Winnipeg constructed a large concrete culvert that cost $11,500 to carry a branch of the Oskondaga River under the grade and was rehabilitated in 1983.
The Redditt Subdivision runs from Sioux Lookout to Winnipeg.
Part 5 of 8.
Active, 1908-1994.
Video of the former Grand Trunk Pacific Railway-Lake Superior Division, Canadian Government Railways-Fort William Subdivision, Canadian National Railways-Fort William/Lake Superior/Graham/Raith/Graham Subdivision (MP 19.9-25.1) south of Raith, ON. Features the grade as it parallels the CPKC Kaministiquia Subdivision and skirts a massive rock ridge with several high embankments, very large rock cuts and a special visitor.
Part 4 of 8.
Active, 1908-1994.
Video of the former Grand Trunk Pacific Railway-Lake Superior Division, Canadian Government Railways-Fort William Subdivision, Canadian National Railways-Fort William/Lake Superior/Graham/Raith/Graham Subdivision (MP 19.9-25.1) south of Raith, ON. Features the grade at Horne Station with the remains of the siding, station grounds, well, extensive debris field and rock cuts.
Part 3 of 8.
Active, 1908-1994.
Poverty, Agony, Distress & Want! 