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Canadian National Railway Stations
built in Central Alberta
(updated Mar. 2022)
Photo descriptions
and credits at bottom of page.
Usually, when a new rail line was built, the railway placed a
temporary or portable station (sometimes a boxcar) at a location
until it was determined what kind of station would be appropriate.
Sometimes the 'temporary' station was in place for several years.
The following are some of the 'permanent' stations built by the Canadian
Northern, Grand Trunk Pacific and Canadian National
in Central Alberta. In many cases, the 'permanent' station was
replaced by a larger one if the railway or the community had special
significance.
Canadian Northern 2nd class station Plan 39
(1911-13)
Big Valley
(Alberta Midland arrived 1911 - division point
1914-1923)
built 1912; stucco applied 1942; closed 1967;
line purchased by Central Western Railway 1986; line purchased by
Alberta Prairie Railway Excursions 1998; station restored by
Canadian Northern Society as historic site and terminus of Alberta Prairie
Steam Tours
Stettler
(Alberta Midland arrived 1911)
built 1911; stucco applied 1937; relocated a few blocks to Town & Country
Museum Stettler
Hanna
built 1913; stucco applied 1937;
closed 1990; designated historic site; plans to relocate and restore
Similar stations were built at Athabasca, Alberta and Kindersley,
Saskatchewan
Note: Alberta Midland Railway was a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Canadian Northern Railway.
Canadian Northern 3rd class station Plan 29 (1911-19)
Sylvan Lake
( CNWR arrived 1911)
built 1913; demolished or removed
Elspeth
(CNWR arrived 1912)
built 1913; demolished
Eckville
(CNWR arrived 1912)
 built 1912; demolished or removed
Leslieville
(CNWR arrived 1912)
built 1912; stucco applied 1945; demolished or removed
 Prentiss
(CNWR arrived 1911)
built 1912; demolished or
removed
Haynes
(CNWR arrived 1911)
built 1913; demolished or removed
Nevis
(CNWR arrived 1911)
built 1912; sold 1962
Alix
(CNWR arrived 1911)
built 1912; abandoned 1922 after
creation of Canadian National and change of crew from Big Valley to
Mirror; relocated to GTP site for Three Hills sub station in 1927;
demolished 1975
Donalda
(Alberta Midland arrived 1911)
built 1911; stucco applied 1937; demolished;
a CNor 4th class 1909 station was
relocated to the Donalda site from Vandura Saskatchewan and restored
 Meeting Creek
(Alberta Midland arrived
1911)
built 1913; stucco applied
1937; closed 1981; restored
1987 on original site
 Camrose
(Alberta Midland arrived 1911)
built 1911; stucco applied 1937; closed 1988; restored
and relocated 1993;
used as museum and headquarters for CNor Historical Society
Similar stations were built at Drumheller, Munson, Morrin, Delia and
Red Willow
Note: CNWR (Canadian Northern Western Railway)
and Alberta Midland Railway were subsidiaries of Canadian Northern
created to take advantage of government subsidies.
Canadian Northern Freight and Passenger Shelter
Joffre (CNWR arrived 1911)
built 1916; destroyed by
fire 1961
Burbank
(CNWR arrived 1911)
built 1915; relocated 1959
Briggs
(CNWR arrived 1911)
built 1919; removed
Horberg
(CNWR arrived 1914)
built 1918; closed
1955; removed 1959
Saunders
(CNWR arrived 1914)
built 1918; closed
1955; removed 1959
Alexo/Stolberg
(CNWR arrived 1914)
built 1924
 Grand Trunk Pacific
Design 'E' Mirror Station Plan 157
(1911-12)
(GTP arrived in 1911; Mirror becomes division point 1911
between Edmonton and Calgary)
Modified Type E built 1911; stucco applied
1944; destroyed by fire 1975
Similar stations were built at Camrose and Tofield Alberta as well as Battleford
and Yorkton, Sask.
Grand Trunk Pacific Type E station (1911-13)
 Alix
(GTP arrived 1911)
built
1911; converted to section house 1927
Ardley
(GTP arrived 1911)
built
1911; stucco applied 1936; closed 1965; purchased for $30 and relocated
1967 to farm outside of community
Delburne
(GTP arrived 1911)
built 1912; stucco applied 1922; relocated a few blocks
in 1978 to Anthony Henday Museum
Elnora
(GTP arrived 1911)
built 1911; stucco applied 1922; demolished
1975
Huxley
(GTP arrived 1912)
built 1913; stucco applied 1922;
demolished 1976
 Trochu
(GTP
arrived 1912)
built 1912; stucco applied 1922;
replaced 1959 with 'modern' design (see below)
Three Hills
(GTP arrived 1912)
built 1912 on west side of tracks; replaced in 1919
by GTP Type
F (stuccoed) on east side of tracks; moved to east side of tracks
and used as section house; demolished 1975 (original Type E)
Bashaw
(GTP arrived 1911)
built 1911; stucco applied 1922; demolished or
removed
Similar stations were built at Duhamel, New Norway, Beiseker,
Irricana, Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, Hinton and 39 other Alberta
locations. Over 350 stations in the Class E category were built in
Western Canada.
 Grand
Trunk Pacific Type F station
(1913-1920)
Three Hills
(GTP arrived 1912)
built
1919 on east side of tracks to replace Type E station on west side
of tracks; relocated a few blocks to Kneehill Historical Museum 1985
Only 2 others of this type were built in Alberta and 9 were built in
Saskatchewan. The Three Hills station is the only one known to have
survived.
Canadian Northern 3rd class station
Plan 75 (1914-1922)
 Nordegg/Brazeau
(CNWR
arrived 1914)
built 1914; closed 1955; demolished
or removed; Only one of its plan type in Alberta; 4 in Sask.; 3 in
Man.
Note: a number of stations of unknown type,
possibly portables, were built along the CNWR between Rocky Mountain
House and Nordegg in 1913-14 at Horburg, Saunders and probably other
localities
Canadian Northern 3rd class station Plan 72
(1915-1924)
 Warden Jct.
(Alberta Midland and CNWR arrived 1911)
built 1919 to replace CNor 4th class station
destroyed by fire 1919; stuccoed 1942; sold and demolished 1984
Rowley built 1922 to replace
small freight and passenger station; stucco
applied 1939; rail line abandoned; station restored in 1980s by
Canadian Northern Society
Similar stations were built at 20 other Alberta locations (including
4 along the Drumheller sub between Hanna and Calgary), 29 in
Sask.; 7 in Man.
CNWR/CPR Lochearn station at Rocky Mountain House
CPR Standard A3 station (1920)
Rocky Mountain House
(CNWR arrived 1912, Alberta Central arrived
1914 but CNWR used CPR/ACR river bridge built in 1912 requiring 4
miles of shared trackage)
shared CPR Standard
A3 station built 1920 to replace portables; named 'Lochearn' until
at least mid-1920s, later station renamed 'Rocky Mtn House'; destroyed by
fire 1967
Canadian National Red Deer station Plan 148 (1923)
 Red Deer
(CNWR arrived 1911 on north side of river as part of plan for a
Calgary-Edmonton north-south route; Red Deer River bridge constructed 1920
by Canadian National at mouth of Waskasoo Creek to link with east
end of downtown Red Deer; bridge abandoned 1941 due to washouts;
service to station was maintained by constructing a link to the CPR
yards and an agreement to use trackage from North Junction)
New
station built 1923 (replacing temporary station) as a one-of-a-kind
modified Canadian National Railways third class station similar to
but significantly different than the Canadian Northern third class
stations built prior to
implementation of CNR standard third class plan;
 62'x24', platform
300'x12'; main
floor had ticket office, waiting rooms, toilets, baggage and
express; residence on 2nd floor; after several bridge washouts, new
link made to CPR yards further west; last passenger
train (mixed) 1955; closed and demolished 1960 with yards relocated
back to
north side of river and station land redeveloped for
Co-op Shopping Centre; b/w photos indicate change of paint scheme in
1955 from white/grey with green trim to oxide red with cream trim.
Canadian National Modern station
Plan 365 (1959)
Trochu
(GTP arrived 1912)
built 1959 to replace an existing Type E;
closed 1971; demolished
Photo descriptions and credits:
Header:
Red Deer 1923 Canadian National Railways modified 3rd class station 1955 (Red Deer Archives P7009);
Big Valley 1912 Canadian Northern 2nd class station (Paul
Pettypiece 2007);
Stettler 1911 Canadian Northern 2nd class station (Paul Pettypiece
2010);
Sylvan Lake 1913 Canadian Northern 3rd class station ca 1940 (Sylvan Lake Archives);
Prentiss 1912 Canadian Northern 3rd class station 1945 (Ellis
photo);
Renderings of Canadian Northern 3rd class station 3 variations (Paul Pettypiece);
Meeting Creek 1913 Canadian Northern 3rd class station restored
(Paul Pettypiece 2013);
Camrose 1911 Canadian Northern 3rd class station restored (Paul
Pettypiece 2013);
Mirror 1911 Grand Trunk Pacific Design E station (date & source
unknown);
Rendering of Mirror Grand Trunk Pacific Design E station (Paul
Pettypiece);
Ardley 1911 Grand Trunk Pacific type E station now farm building (Paul Pettypiece
2010);
Delburne 1912 Grand Trunk Pacific type E station at Anthony Henday Museum (Paul
Pettypiece 2007);
Rendering of Grand Trunk Pacific type E station (Paul Pettypiece);
Three Hills 1919 Grand Trunk Pacific type F station at Kneehill
Historical Museum (Paul Pettypiece 2012);
Rendering of Canadian Northern 3rd class station 4th variation (Paul
Pettypiece);
Nordegg/Brazeau 1914 Canadian Northern 3rd class station ca 1925
(Glenbow Archives NA-5606-12);
Rowley 1922 Canadian National 3rd class CNor station restored (Paul
Pettypiece 2012);
Rocky Mountain House/Lochearn 1920 Canadian Pacific standard A3 station 1921
(source unknown);
Red Deer 1923 Canadian National Railways modified 3rd class station 1955 (Red Deer Archives P7009);
Red Deer 1923 Canadian National Railways modified 3rd class station
rear 1955 (Archives Alberta cropped);
Rendering of 1923 Canadian National Railways modified 3rd class
station as built (Paul Pettypiece);
Rendering of 1923 Canadian National Railways modified 3rd class
station in 1956 (Paul Pettypiece);
Trochu 1959 Canadian National Railways modern station 1959 (source
unknown)
Note: All renderings are the
intellectual property of Paul Pettypiece and may only be used for
personal or historical use.
Photos courtesy of Red Deer Archives, Glenbow Archives, Provincial
Archives of Alberta, Sylvan Lake Archives and
Paul Pettypiece.
A few have an unknown source.
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