The Canadian Pacific River Lake and River Service, also known as the British Columbia Lake and River Service, was a division of Canadian Pacific Railway

Canadian Pacific Railway

The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...

 (CPR) which began operating passenger and cargo shipping routes along British Columbia's inland waters during the late 19th century.

CPR overview

In 1884, CPR began purchasing sailing ships as part of a railway supply service on the Great Lakes

Great Lakes

The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...

. Over time, CPR became a railroad company with widely organized water transportation auxiliaries including the Canadian Pacific Railway Upper Lake Service

Canadian Pacific Railway Upper Lake Service

The Canadian Pacific Railway Upper Lake Service, also known as the Canadian Pacific Railway Upper Lake Steamships, was a division of Canadian Pacific Railway which began operating passenger and cargo shipping routes in the Great Lakes during the late 19th century.-CPR overview:In 1884, CPR began...

, the Trans-Pacific service, the British Columbia Coast Steamships

Canadian Pacific Railway Coast Service

The Canadian Pacific Railway Coast Service, also known as the British Columbia Coast Steamships , was a division of Canadian Pacific Railway which began operating Pacific coastal shipping routes in the late 19th century...

, the British Columbia Lake and River Service, the Trans-Atlantic service, and the Ferry service.

In the 20th century, the company evolved into a transcontinental railroad which operated two transoceanic services which connected Canada with Europe and with Asia. The range of CPR services were aspects of a integrated plan.

British Columbia Lake and River Service

CPR's expansion in the West included expanding routes. More ships were added to the inland waters fleet. For example, in 1901 CPR built three sternwheelers for use on the Yukon River

Yukon River

The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. The source of the river is located in British Columbia, Canada. The next portion lies in, and gives its name to Yukon Territory. The lower half of the river lies in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river is long and empties into...

 — the Tyrrell, the Duschesnay, and the Dawson. The investment in more ships was accompanied by increased numbers of CPR workers. Expansion required additional CPR station and terminal structures to be built.

Inland fleet

CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY LAKE AND RIVER FLEET
Active Service	Vessel Name	Launch Date	Maiden Voyage	Other Names	Notes	Loss Date
Canadian Pacific Railway Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001... (1884–1915)
1893	Aberdeen	1893	1893		Lake Okanagan	1919
1911	Bonnington	1911	1911		service on Arrow Lakes BC	1931
	Dawson	.	.	.	Yukon River	.
	Duschesnay	.	.	.	Yukon River	.
	Kaleden	.	.	.	Lake Okanagan	.
	Kootenay	.	.	.	.	.
	Kuskanook	.	.	.	.	.
	Lytton Lytton (sternwheeler) Lytton was a sternwheel steamboat that ran on the Arrow Lakes and the Columbia River in southeastern British Columbia and northeastern Washington from 1890 to 1904.-Design and construction:...	.	.	.	.	.
	Minto Minto (sternwheeler) Minto was a sternwheel steamboat that ran on the Arrow Lakes in British Columbia from 1898 to 1954. In those years of service, Minto had steamed over 2 million miles serving the small communities on Arrow Lakes. Minto and her sister Moyie were the last sternwheelers to run in regularly scheduled...	.	.	.	.	.
	Moyie Moyie (sternwheeler) The Moyie is a paddle steamer sternwheeler that worked on Kootenay Lake in British Columbia, Canada from 1898 until 1957.After her nearly sixty years of service, she was sold to the town of Kaslo and restored...	.	.	.		.
	Naramata	.	.	.	.	.
1907	Okanagan	1907	1907			1938
1914	Sicamous	1914	1914		Lake Okanagan; museum ship at Penticton, BC	1949
	Tyrell	.	.	.	Yukon River	.
	York	.	.	.	Lake Okanagan	.

21st century

Despite many changes, including corporate mergers and restructuring, some elements of the lake service continue to operate.

See also

• CP Ships
  CP Ships
  CP Ships was a large Canadian container shipping company, prior to being taken over by Hapag Lloyd in late 2005. CP Ships had its head office in the City of Westminster in London and later in the City Place Gatwick development on the property of London Gatwick Airport in Crawley, West Sussex.The...