Grand Trunk Railway

Conceived in 1851 by Francis Hincks, co-premier of the Province of Canada, as a trunkline uniting the British North American colonies, the Grand Trunk railway had been put together by the amalgamation of existing lines and the construction of long sections joining them.

By 1859 it was completed, running from Sarnia, in Canada West, to the Atlantic Ocean at Portland, Maine; in 1860 an extension was added in Canada East, from Lévis to Fraserville (Rivière-du-Loup). Inflated construction costs, overestimated revenues, and an inadequate initial capitalization had quickly put the line into severe financial difficulty. For years, the federal government wrestled with the problems of the Grand Trunk and Grand Trunk Pacific railways; by 1922 the decision had been made to nationalize the entire Grand Trunk Railway system and make it part of the Canadian National Railways.