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The Canadian Pacific Railway The Steel Ribbon… The Story of the CPR The first Prime Minister of Canada, Sir John A. Macdonald, dreams of a railroad that would connect the vast areas of Canada This railway would help transport people from the East to West and vice versa Also, it would be a great hand in moving new immigrants from the East coast to the vast areas of land in the West With this railway, farmers from the West could bring their products to the East What an excellent idea! After being re-elected in 1872, Macdonald and the conservatives decide to begin on this project The Canadian Pacific Railway, under Sir Hugh Allan, take over the construction But then something went wrong… Word got to Canadians that Allan and his friends had given Macdonald lots of cash to help him get elected, in return for Macdonald to guarantee his company the right to build this railway. This was known as “The Pacific Scandal” This ‘bribe’ , ladies and gentlemen, cost Macdonald his job…for now at least… Macdonald resigned, and the Liberal leader, Alexander Mackenzie took over as Prime Minister Mackenzie saw this whole railway thing as a waste of time, too good to be true, and far too expensive During Mackenzie’s 5 year term, a great economic depression set in… Canadian crops were attacked by insects (weevils and grasshoppers) Many small businesses ran out of money because they could not compete with cheaper goods from the United States The people of Canada blamed Mackenzie’s government… 1878…Macdonald’s National Policy… Keep cheaper American goods out, and encourage Canadians to buy domestic products Fill the rich prairie lands with settlers Have the settlers of the West buy products from the East, and vice versa And most importantly, continue the construction of the CPR. The Canadian people re-elected Macdonald in 1878. By 1880, the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway is back in full throttle under the management of George Stephen and Donald A. Smith So before we go o