Gray Shortline Railroad / Centennial Park

The project was conceived when it became known that the light rail along #306 highway would be removed by the end of 2009.
Both CN Railway (ballast) and Cando Consulting (ties, rails, spikes, signs, whatever we needed) agreed to provide the materials necessary to build 66' of rail along Main Street.
All we needed to do, was provide the manpower.
The area has been designated Centennial Park.

Plaque historical highlights:

1911 Railroad surveyed
1912 Grand Trunk Pacific Railroad (GTPR) begins operation
1913 First passenger train
1914 Station built               
1920 CN Railway takes over operation of GTPR
1926 The Skunk passenger train (Car #15823) in operation
1952 Power lines come to rural Saskatchewan
1959 Daily passenger service (The Skunk) discontinued
1979 Hamlet of Gray ‘formed’
1980's Grain elevators removed
1995 Rail line 'out of service'
2009 Rail and tie removal. Shortline (66’ rebuilt)

Some project information;

• just a coincidence that we ended up with 66' of railway (two pieces of rail - 33' each). We just chose the dimension that would fit on the plot of land selected. We have come to learn that in 1911 the surveyor's tape (known as Gunter's Chain - worth the search) was 66' long - the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway was plotted 66' at a time.
• Bill Carnegie built a jigger/hand-car for use on the track. Configured as the originals would have been, there is a way to adjust the gears to go forwards or backwards. So, anyone interested can 'pump' 66' one-way and then 66' back the other way.
• there is a sampling of signs on the site; W notified to the conductor to sound the whistle, the numbered mile markers signified the distance to the US border, the double dots (and double double dots) indicated road crossings (or two).

An article (link below) was submitted to Prairie North magazine and was included in the Summer 2010 edition.

Pages 53-56