Vancouver Archives: Item: Can P6
On May 23, 1887, C.P.R. Engine 374 became the first transcontinental passenger train to arrive to Vancouver.
According to Chuck Davis History of Metro Vancouver, the train was built by the C.P.R. in 1886 and was, "one of eight similar steam locomotives built that year in Montreal." The arrival of engine 374 also marked the anniversary of Engine No. 37, the first train to cross Canada, which arrived into Port Moody in 1886.
Photo: Roundhouse Community Centre
Coinciding with Vancouver's incorporation that same year, these engines marked the beginning of Vancouver growth outside of present-day Gastown. The C.P.R.'s first train terminals and hotels shifted the city centre to Georgia and Granville Streets and as a result, defined the downtown core as we know it today.
Engine 374 was retired in 1945 and is now on display at the Roundhouse Community Centre in Yaletown. You can learn more about it HERE.
