The Railway Museum of British Columbia, formerly known as the West Coast Railway Heritage Park, is a heritage railway in Squamish, British Columbia, Canada, operated by the West Coast Railway Association.

The museum runs excursion trains over Canadian National track throughout the year. Their primary event is the North Pole Express, a short operation hauled by two diesel locomotives. They also host the Sea to Sky Model Train and Hobby Show and Buddy and Friends Children's Festival, and previously operated a Day Out with Thomas event.

History The West Coast Railway Association was established in 1961 by a group of enthusiasts, who operated rail excursions in British Columbia with historical rail equipment. As their collection grew, the association began making plans to open a museum in the 1980s. Squamish was chosen as the site, and a sublease agreement was signed on 25 May 1990 with the District of Squamish for a plot. Construction began the following year in 1991, when the association purchased a former Pacific Great Eastern car shop and had it moved to their site in August. After two years of construction, they moved their first pieces of equipment into the park on 1 May 1994, hauled by PGE RS-1 No. 561.

The museum, named the West Coast Railway Heritage Park, had a grand opening ceremony on 10 July 1994 and began its first season, attracting 4,300 guests in its first year. In July 1996, a ridable miniature railway named the West Coast Mini Rail was opened.

The regularly scheduled Royal Hudson excursion train, hauled by ex-Canadian Pacific Royal Hudson No. 2860, brought a considerable amount of passengers to Squamish, and more specifically, to the Heritage Park. On 2 October 1999, the annual Association of Railway Museums Conference took place at the site, during which No. 2860 was chartered to participate in and unbeknownstly marked the end of its second career, as mechanical issues followed in the proceeding months. With the cancellation of the excursion in 2001 and the unnecessary storage of the locomotive in BC Rail's North Vancouver Steam Shops, No. 2860 was leased to the District of Squamish and West Coast Railway Association for preservation at the Heritage Park. It was hauled to Squamish by FP7A No. 4069 on 13 May 2002 and parked besides the Mac Norris Station with several coaches. It was later moved to the Car Shop track around 2004.

In 2021, the Heritage Park was renamed to the Railway Museum of British Columbia, and a blacksmith shop, a Pacific Great Eastern fire hall, a print shop, and a general store were opened.

After 21 years of operating an annual Day Out With Thomas, the event was cancelled in 2025 due to the exchange rate on the United States dollar, as most licensed props, such as the Thomas the Tank Engine replica locomotive, were from the United States. Day Out With Thomas was replaced by a similar event, titled the Buddy and Friends Children's Festival, which focuses on PGE No. 2 disguised as fictional steam locomotive "Buddy".

Equipment Locomotives +Locomotive details Number Image Type Model Built Builder Former owner Status 2 Steam 1910 Baldwin Locomotive Works Pacific Great Eastern Railway Display 25 Diesel 80-Ton 1947 General Electric Vancouver Wharves Display 182 Diesel RS-1 1951 American Locomotive Company Great Northern Railway Display 551 Diesel 65-Ton 1948 General Electric Pacific Great Eastern Railway Display 561 Diesel RSC-3m 1951 Montreal Locomotive Works Pacific Great Eastern Railway Operational 941 Diesel 70-Ton 1949 General Electric British Columbia Electric Railway Display 960 Diesel Electric 1912 American Locomotive Company/General Electric British Columbia Electric Railway Display; recently cosmetically restored 1404 Diesel FP7Au 1953 General Motors Diesel Algoma Central Railway Display 2860 Steam 1940 Montreal Locomotive Works Canadian Pacific Railway Display 4069 Diesel FP7A 1952 General Motors Diesel Canadian Pacific Railway Operational 4459 Diesel F7B 1953 General Motors Diesel Canadian Pacific Railway Display 6503 Diesel S-3 1951 Montreal Locomotive Works Canadian Pacific Railway Operational 6520 Diesel FP9Au 1957 General Motors Diesel Canadian National Railway Operational 8000 Diesel DRS-4-4-1000 1948 Baldwin Locomotive Works Canadian Pacific Railway Under cosmetic restoration

Passenger cars +Passenger car details Number Name Image Type Built Builder Former owner Notes 8 Alberta Business car 1929 CPR Angus Shops Canadian Pacific Railway 16 British Columbia Official car 1890 Barney and Smith Car Company Canadian Pacific Railway Oldest piece of rail equipment in the museum 50 Northern Summit Business car 1924 Pullman Company Pacific Great Eastern Railway Previously served as the private business car of BC Premier W.A.C. Bennett 58 Lions Club Lounge car 1920 Bethlehem Steel Corporation British Columbia Railway Privately owned by Squamish Lions Club 167 Clinton Interurban/sleeper car 1924 American Car and Foundry Company Pacific Great Eastern Railway 598 Henry Pickering Open observation car 1914 CPR Angus Shops Canadian Pacific Railway 623 Rules instruction car 1934 Milwaukee Road Pacific Great Eastern Railway 714 H "Bud" Butterworth Troop sleeper 1943 Pullman-Standard Company Pacific Great Eastern Railway 722 Baggage-express car 1943 Pullman-Standard Company Pacific Great Eastern Railway 1090 Parlour observation car 1910 Barney and Smith Car Company Great Northern Railway Previously owned privately by Trevor Mills; possibly will be scrapped 1246 Dunraven Dining car 1918 Pullman Company Canadian National Railway 1910 Pullman Spirit Business car 1910 Pullman Company Canadian National Railway Privately owned by David Walmsley 2263 Cowichan River Display car 1950 Canadian Car and Foundry/Canadian Pacific Railway Canadian Pacific Railway 2271 Quesnel Coach car 1950 Canadian Car and Foundry/Canadian Pacific Railway Canadian Pacific Railway 2280 Patricia Anne Display car 1950 Canadian Car and Foundry/Canadian Pacific Railway Canadian Pacific Railway 2291 Kootenay River Display car 1950 Canadian Car and Foundry/Canadian Pacific Railway Canadian Pacific Railway 2514 Colonist car 1905 CPR Angus Shops Canadian Pacific Railway 3218 Jackson & James Drummond Café-coach car 1954 Canadian Car and Foundry Canadian National Railway Originally named the Bill and Dorothy Lahr 3223 Café-coach car 1954 Canadian Car and Foundry Canadian National Railway 3704 Baggage-mail car 1948 Canadian Car and Foundry Canadian Pacific Railway 4908 Nanaimo River Mail-boxcar 1937 National Steel Car Canadian Pacific Railway 5161 Marjatta Coach car 1919 Canadian Car and Foundry Canadian National Railway 5569 Harry and Margaret Bluck Coach car 1954 Canadian Car and Foundry Canadian National Railway 5596 Paul D. Roy Coach car 1954 Canadian Car and Foundry Canadian National Railway 5623 Porteau Coach car 1954 Canadian Car and Foundry Canadian National Railway 5652 Capilano Coach car 1954 Canadian Car and Foundry Canadian National Railway 7186 Combine car 1919 Pullman Company Canadian National Railway 9622 McDonald Creek Baggage-generator car 1955 National Steel Car Canadian National Railway 15006 Track inspection car 1954 Pullman-Standard Company Canadian National Railway Privately owned BC-14 RDC-1 1962 Budd Company British Columbia Railway Privately owned; display BC-21 RDC-1 1962 Budd Company British Columbia Railway Operational BC-33 RDC-3 1957 Budd Company Pacific Great Eastern Railway Display

Freight cars

+Passenger car details Number Image Type Built Builder Former owner Notes 273 Hopper 1950 National Steel Car British Columbia Railway 894 Tank car 1958 FMC Corporation 1383 Flatcar 1956 National Steel Car British Columbia Railway 1817 Caboose 1955 Pacific Great Eastern Railway/National Steel Car Pacific Great Eastern Railway 1859 Caboose 1969 Pacific Great Eastern Railway Squamish Shops British Columbia Railway 1910 Tank car 1937 British Columbia Railway 1926 Tank car 1921 American Car and Foundry Company British Columbia Railway 2055 Crane 1916 Ohio Locomotive Crane Vancouver Creosoting Company 4182 Boxcar 1958 National Steel Car British Columbia Railway 5172 Boxcar 1971 National Steel Car British Columbia Railway 6002 Snowplough 1957 National Steel Car Pacific Great Eastern Railway 6003 Snowplough 1956 National Steel Car Pacific Great Eastern Railway 11474 Caboose 1965 Baldwin Locomotive Works/Great Northern Railway Burlington Northern Railroad 55365 Snowplough 1929 Eastern Car Company Canadian National Railway 436631 Caboose 1914 Canadian Pacific Railway Canadian Pacific Railway Previously displayed at a McDonald's in Vancouver

Gallery

See also British Columbia Railway Central BC Railway and Forestry Museum Kamloops Heritage Railway Kettle Valley Steam Railway West Coast Railway Association

References

External links