Steam Engine Driver's View

I went to Lindsay today to visit Wenda's parents. Ken, my father in law and I went to see the historic Engine # 40 as it sits on display in one of the parks. Unfortunately it is not well looked after and the kids have broken the windows of the engine.

Here you can see what the engineer saw as he drove trains like this one across this vast country of ours. How many of you know that the "Steam Engine" was the invention of the last century. Certainly, it is the single most important factor that contributed to Canada being what it is today. Without the steam engine, we could not have united the territories to make this country, prior to the great annexations that were taking place South of the border in the 1860's. Imagine the freight that could be hauled by a train compared to what was traditionally carried by Red River Cart through muskeg roads of Northern Ontario. It was then what the internet, cell phones, and personal computers are to us today - the high tech wonder of transportation and communication all in one smoking belching beast.