All aboard the train

Fort Edmonton Park is a favourite destination for steam train buffsFort Edmonton Park is a favourite destination for steam train buffs

Fort Edmonton Park in the city of Edmonton is a living historical site that is a popular spot for tourists with a passion for days gone by.

Immerse yourself in the past. The park traces the history of Edmonton, Alberta and Canada; Fort Edmonton was built as one of the Hudson’s Bay Trading Company outposts in 1795. Established as a fur-trading post, the fort eventually became the hub of central Alberta, and a city grew up around it.

Visitors to Fort Edmonton Park enjoy the various historical settings that are portrayed both by the layout of the streets and buildings and by the actors who bring history to life in first-person interpretations of the time periods they represent: the early fort, 1885, 1905 (the year Alberta became a province in Canadian confederation) and the 1920s.

The steam whistle beckons. One of the most popular attractions at the park is the steam train. Railway buffs thrill at the sound of the whistle and the horse-like huffing of the steam engine. Admission to the park includes unlimited rides on the Edmonton, Yukon and Pacific (E. Y. & P.) Railway, named after the first railway built in Edmonton.

The engine itself is a true relic of the past: it was built in 1919 in Pennsylvania by Baldwin Locomotive Works. Known as Locomotive 107, it represents the style of steam engine originally used on the E. Y. & P. Railway. As with many of the locomotives found in Canada’s historical parks, the 107 was once used as a logging engine; it was owned by the Industrial Lumber Company in Oakdale, Louisiana, before being employed to move passengers and freight.

Fort Edmonton Park also features several historical railway coaches built between 1899 and 1914, and even has a caboose that is wheelchair accessible.