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On the November 7th Anniversary of the driving of the last spike, the Federal Government of Canada has made this day of the year National Railway Day as announced in this Ottawa Citizen article – Feds make Nov. 7 National Railway Day on anniversary of last spike –
Ottawa Citizen November 7th, 2010 . This article may be read by clicking here.

Below is the official announcement of National Railway Day by the Federal Government:

“Minister Moore Officially Declares November 7 National Railway Day OTTAWA, November 7, 2010

The Honourable James Moore, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages, today announced that the Government of Canada will now officially recognize November 7 as National Railway Day.

November 7, 1885, was the day the final spike was driven into the Canadian Pacific Railway at Craigellachie, British Columbia, marking the completion of Canada’s most important railway system.

“The construction of the transcontinental railway united a collection of provinces into a nation,” said Minister Moore. “It is fitting that this great national project, immortalized for many years in novels, poetry, and song, should be recognized with a special day that will encourage Canadians to reflect on the importance of nation building and to remember those who suffered through adverse conditions to build this railroad.”

“The famous ribbon of steel united Canada from the Atlantic to the Pacific, encouraged the settlement of our Prairie and Western provinces, and allowed goods, services, and people to flow from coast to coast,” said Dean Del Mastro, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage, who attended a special Parks Canada commemoration of the driving of the last spike in British Columbia.

The Canadian Pacific Railway was founded in 1881.The first transcontinental train left Montréal, Quebec, and Toronto, Ontario, for Port Moody, British Columbia, on June 28, 1886.”
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The image above captures the first Canadian transcontinental train arriving in Port Arthur, Ontario on June 30, 1886
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Click here to read our next news posting on this momentous event.
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Posting by Russ Milland; Image from the Wikpedia article for the CPR