A Brief History Of The Canadian Pacific Railway History Essay

A Brief History Of The Canadian Pacific Railway History Essay The Railways are very important part of Canada’s history and a part of transportation. â€Å"For more than a century, CP rail was called the Canadian Pacific Railway, and it remains today the railroad that helped to settle the Canadian West in the Second half of the last Century† ( Thomas York 129). The CP was not only built to provide transportation, but it was also built to get British Columbia united with Canada. It also helped many Chinese immigrants to come to Canada and had a strong impact on the political and economic connection between west to east of Canada. It is beyond doubt that the Canadian Pacific Railway was really the one that had Canada united as a country. Chinese workers had an important contribution to the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway in British Columbia. Andrew Onderdonk, an American who was hired for construction contractor for Canadian Pacific Railway in British Columbia, signed agreement with Chinese contractors in China’s Gua ngdong province. Five thousand labourers were sent from China by ship during these contracts and over seven thousand were employed from California. Between 1881 and 1884 there were 17000 Chinese labourers working on Canadian Pacific Railway. Chinese workers got paid â€Å"$1.00 a day, and from this $1.00 the workers had to still pay for their food and their camping and cooking gear, [while] white workers did not have to pay for these things even though they were paid more money $1.50-$2.50 per day†(Library and Archives Canada). The Chinese workers had the most dangerous jobs from others, as they had to break off granite and planted explosives that were used to blow up tunnels. While working on the railway, many died due to accidents, fires and dynamite blasts. The Chinese workers lived in tents, but these tents were unsafe as they did not provide protection from falling rocks. When the Canadian Pacific Railway completed in 1885, the Chinese workers needed to find new jobs. Se veral workers went back to China, while some found a new job as gardeners, cooks and servants. The Chinese moved to east of Canada and settled there, opening restaurants and laundries. When the railway finished, the government passed The Chinese Immigration Act of 1885 charging a Head Tax of $50 to any Chinese coming to Canada. This act was meant to stop Chinese immigration to Canada, but the 1885 act failed and the government passed The Chinese Immigration Act of 1900 to increase the tax to $100 and The Chinese Immigration Act of 1903 to increase the tax to $500. An estimated of $23 million was collected from 1885 and 1923 from the head tax. During this period, the Chinese in Canada lived a bachelor society as families in China would not pay this much money to send their daughters to Canada. After Canada entered World War II, the Chinese communities contributed to Canada’s war efforts and this brought â€Å"independent Chinese immigrants in Canada. . . after Canada eliminat ed race and the â€Å"place of origin† section from its immigration policy in 1967†³(History of Chinese Immigration to Canada, Wikipedia.org). Chinese suffered extreme intolerance and abuse, but thanks to their work of the Trans-Canada railway, Chinese communities developed across the Canada. When the railway was building, many manufacturer began to see this railway had big economic possible.