Chignecto Ship Railway - American Canal Society

Chignecto Ship Railway
STATUS
ACS
Never Completed
HAER
STATE/PROVINCE
COUNTIES:
LIFT LOCKS
LENGTH
Nova Scotia, Canada
DATES IN USE
CANAL
SLACKWATER
TOTAL
No./SIZE
Cumberland
LOCATION (Endpoints of Canal):
Fort Lawrence and Tidnish
TOPOGRAPHIC MAPS:
ENLARGEMENTS
American Canal Society Canal Index
CANAL
1
2
3
4
HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE:
"The land is the site of an 1880's plan to transport ships across land by rail, from the Northumberland Strait to the Bay of Fundy.
The innovative engineering project was developed by Henry Ketchum to lift a wooden vessel from the water, place it on a rail car
for transport, then return it to the water at the end of the rail line using a special hoist and lock system.
"During the mid-1870s Henry George Clopper Ketchum became interested in the scheme for which he is best known. The
Chignecto Marine Transport Railway Company was formed in 1882 to construct a ship railway for transporting vessels across the
Isthmus of Chignecto, thereby facilitating shipping between the Bay of Fundy and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The proposed
Chignecto Ship Railway would be 17 miles long in a straight line from Fort Lawrence on the Bay of Fundy to Tidnish on the Gulf of
St. Lawrence, with a dock at each end. Ships would be raised by hydraulic lift from the water onto the railway, drawn by two
locomotives across the isthmus, and then lowered into the water to resume their journey. Ketchum acted as managing director of
the project."
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION:
"Construction began in October 1888, but the Chignecto Ship Railway soon faced serious financial difficulties. The 1890 collapse
of Baring Brothers and Company, the London bank backing the project, signalled the death of Ketchum's dream. In 1892 The
Canadian Parliament refused to extend the time period for their contract with the Chignecto Marine Transport Railway Company,
thereby destroying any possibility of the project being completed. Three-quarters of the work was completed at that point,
including the docks at Fort Lawrence and Tidnish Bridge, 16 of the 17 miles of rail-bed, and 13 miles of track. Soon after, on 8
September 1896, Ketchum died unexpectedly in Amherst, Nova Scotia. He was buried at Tidnish within view of the ship railway
terminus."
Above quoted from the University of New Brunswick web site
From Wikipedia: "The Chignecto Ship Railway was an ambitious project to transport ships on a railway across the Isthmus of
Chignecto in Nova Scotia, Canada, facilitating shipping between the Bay of Fundy and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It was proposed in
1875 by Henry Ketchum, and in 1882 the Chignecto Marine Transport Railway Company was incorporated. Despite the largest
part of the works being completed, work ceased in 1891 as a result of financial difficulties.[1] Most of the railbed still exists and
forms a hiking trail on land purchased by the Government of Nova Scotia in 2012.
NAMES & ADDRESSES OF GROUPS CONCERNED WITH CANAL'S PRESERVATION/RESTORATION:
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL SUMMARY:
See the Chignecto Ship Railway on the web
Chapman, Sarah. "Chignecto Ship Railway".
This document has been archived and can be found in "Little Known Portions of Nova Scotia History".
In http://www.alts.net/ns1625/histindx.html Under Special Topics, click on Railways and scroll down to Sarah Chapman's document
UNPUBLISHED RECORDS, PHOTOS, DRAWINGS (CEHR, HAER, HABS. Local or Regional Historical Societies, Libraries, etc.):
EXISTING OR RECOMMENDED LANDMARK STATUS (CEHR, National Register, ETC.):
Investigation made by:
David G. Barber, 16 Ballou Road, Hopedale, MA 01747
Address:
Use additional pages for added information
Date:
5/28/12
:
Tidnish
Tidnish Dock
Dock
Provincial
Provincial Park
Park
Jacksons
Jacksons Point
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Seagrove
Tidnish
Tidnish
Tidnish
Tidnish Cross
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Settlement
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Plan Showing
Chignecto Ship Railway
Cumberland County
Province of Nova Scotia
LEGEND
Crown Lands
6
Truemanville
Truemanville
Tyndal
Tyndal Road
Road
East
East Amherst
Amherst
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Nova Scotia Provincial Park
Wilderness Areas (NSE)
Federal Lands
Chignecto Ship Railway
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6
Hastings
Hastings
2
Amherst
Amherst
Shinimicas
Shinimicas Bridge
Bridge
RF: 1 : 80,000
Department of Natural Resources
Lands of Interest
Warren
Warren
Lower
Lower Shinimicas
Shinimicas