Vol. 17 No. 12
December, 1987
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Stay Safe in 87
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Visiting Monarchs
in Capable
Hands
During Rare Tour
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Dave Jones
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Amid all of the tumultuous events of 1939, which
ultimately led to a full blown world war with all of its terrible consequences, Canada was treated to what was then a
very rare and festive occasion - a royal visit by reigning British monarchs.
For the entire westbound section of the tour, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth were completely in the hands of
Canadian Pacific's travel system. And capable hands they proved to be, as the royal couple was shuttled between
Portsmouth, England, and Victoria, B.C, all under the company's management.
Not even the three idle days, experienced on the North Atlantic due to extremely foggy conditions were allowed to
upset the arrangements which had been made; although it did send the entire railway and hotel system scurrying to
reschedule every detail of the visit.
Onboard the stately Empress of Australia, the King and Queen took advantage of the delay by walking the promenade
deck, visiting the bridge, and attending nightly showings of movies, to which the Queen insisted the entire
off-duty crew of several hundred men be invited. The King also found more time for a daily swim in one
of the ship's three pools, and was often seen around the ship indulging his passion for candid photography.
A WELCOME FIT FOR A KING
Landing at Wolfe's Cove in Quebec City, their majesties were whisked up to the Chateau Frontenac, through the archway
to the hotel that was illuminated by a glowing eight-foot crown. There the food, the decor, and the
accommodations had been prepared - well, fit for a king!
Since the C.P.R. was to have the honour of running the first train in the British Empire, other than in Great
Britain, to carry reigning British monarchs, every detail was given special attention.
An exterior paint scheme of royal blue, silver, gold, and stainless steel was applied to 4-6-4 Hudson
locomotive 2850 and 12 cars; the coach interiors were completely refurbished to provide the royal couple with every
possible convenience; and more than 200 of the company's best locomotive engineers, firemen, conductors, and trainmen
were readied for duty on their divisions.
Permission was sought, and granted, to apply royal crown castings to the running boards of the locomotive - a feature
which was afterwards used on all of the same class of locomotives, and led to them being popularly referred to as
Royal Hudsons.
In addition, a 12-car pilot train was assembled to accommodate members of the royal entourage, as well
as the legion of newspaper correspondents, photographers, and commentators who made the cross-Canada
trek along with King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.
Major receptions were organized at Montreal, North Toronto, Winnipeg, and Vancouver where the stations were festooned
with banners, bunting, flags and shields. Thousands of spectators vied for the best vantage points.
LEAD LOCOMOTIVE "A LOVELY ENGINE"
Security efforts were coordinated by the company's own investigation department in co-operation with the
RCMP, city, and provincial police, and members of Scotland Yard assigned to the tour.
Additional stops were made at several of the divisional points, where impromptu greetings and gifts from the crowds
brought a friendly response from the King and Queen, who often stayed longer than had been scheduled to shake hands
and chat.
At White River, Ont., the Queen decided to get a good look at the locomotive by strolling along the platform to the
front of the train, a notion which was heartily endorsed by the King.
The nervousness of the crew, in its desire to have everything in perfect operating condition and appearance for their
majesties, must surely have been eased when the Queen upon completing her inspection, exclaimed: "It is a
lovely engine."
Other highlights of the excursion were a locomotive cab ride through the Rocky Mountains, from Beavermouth to Stoney
Creek, rest stops at the Banff Springs, Chateau Lake Louise, and Empress Hotels, and a crossing from Vancouver to
Victoria, B.C., aboard the British Columbia Coastal vessel Princess Marguerite.
Although most of the eastbound tour was out of the company's hands, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth were back with
Canadian Pacific for two short segments of the rail trip in the East and were ferried home on the pride of the
Canadian Pacific Steamships fleet, the Empress of Britain.
Locomotive 2850 went on to stardom in the 1939 New York World's Fair's "Railroads on Parade" pageant, and
has been preserved at the Canadian Railway Museum at Delson, Quebec.
This CP Rail News article is copyright
1987 by the Canadian Pacific Railway and is reprinted here with
their permission. All photographs, logos, and trademarks are the property of the Canadian Pacific Railway
Company.
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