The "Saskatchewan" (1883-1915), private railway car of Sir C. Van Horne
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
© 2004 Yann Leroy, All Rights Reserved.
* It was specifically built for Sir William C. Van Horne (General Manager of the Canadian Pacific Railway project) and served as his business car from 1883 to 1915. It was partially rebuilt in 1901.
* This railway car has four main rooms (other panoramas of rooms can be assemblied on request): the dining room at the other end of the car, the cooking room, the personal bedroom of Van Horne and this room: the office where Van Horne worked with his collaborators and business partners.
* As you can see, there is a lot of suspended beds that can be opened to sleep with a better comfort than most of our modern trains :-)
* Such railway cars can be seen in action in some scenes of many films such as 'Iron Will' from Walt Disney Pictures (''l'enfer blanc'') or in the famous TV series of the film 'Wild Wild West' (''Les Mysteres de l'Ouest'') from which you will recognize the soundtrack :-)
About the panorama itself:
* You can note multiple varnish blisters on the wood, this because of the years.
* The biggest challenge of this panorama was to restitute nice colors in spite of bad lights.
Don't forget to have a close look at this project's webpage at www.CANDAU.com/wwp200406 - where you will find some special effects: sounds, flares, and so on ...
This original Van Horne's private railway car is now in the Canadian Railway Museum
(http://www.exporail.org ) at Delson/St-Constant,near Montreal in Quebec. It still has its originalfurniture, rugs and mahogany wood panelling
The Saskatchewan car is a unique artefact and can't be physically opened to the public other than by the way of such a 3D Virtual Visit which can be projected on giant screen for full immersion with sound.
The success story of the self made man Sir W.C Van Horne (1843-1915) :
* Born 1843, Chelsea (USA: Illinois), he began his railway career as a telegraph operator for the Illinois Central Railway in 1857. Between 1858 and 1864 he served in various capacities for the Michigan Central Railway. He joined the Chicago & Alton Railway in 1864 and within eight years had worked his way from ticket agent to train dispatcher, then Superintendent of Telegraphs and finally to Division Superintendent. Subsequently, he showed a remarkable aptitude for rebuilding faltering American lines into paying propositions; his consolidation of the Milwaukee Road (1879) being the most notable example.
* He was lured to the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) by J. J. Hill, assuming the position of General Manager on 31 December 1881. In September 1885 Van Horne became CPR Vice-President. Within four years he was elevated to the position of President. He became Chairman of the CPR Board in 1899. He resigned in 1910.
* Van Horne was flamboyant, outspoken and multi-talented. His appetites were legend as was his sophistication. He had a passion for art and he dabbled in architecture
* In 1894 he was awarded a knighthood for his remarkable achievements
* On September 11, 1915, Sir William Cornelius Van Horne died at his home in Montreal. He was buried in his hometown of Joliet (USA: Illinois).
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