The original Iron Road

• The Last Spike of the Canadian Pacific Railway was driven at Craigellachie, British Columbia, at 9:22AM on November 7, 1885.
• It was driven by CPR financier Donald Smith (Lord Strathcona), marking the completion of a transcontinental railroad.
• The railway’s completion fulfilled an 1871 commitment made by the Canadian federal government to BC, which stipulated that a railroad be built joining the Pacific province to Central Canada.
• The transcontinental railway was a major factor in BC’s decision to join the Canadian Confederation.