Regional District of Mount Waddington (RDMW) on Northern Vancouver Island is purchasing a logging rail car from Westcan Rail to add to the rail memorabilia collection at Nimpkish Heritage Park.
The $4,200 purchase was a joint decision made along with the Woss Residents Association, according to Pat English, manager of economic development at RDMW.
The decommissioned logging rail car is currently at Beaver Cove.
The log car will be the latest addition to the park after a caboose and locomotive were promised by Western Forest Products (WFP) in 2018.
The memorial gazebo was officially opened earlier this year, and English said that items will continue to be added to the park in an “ongoing process.”
“The locomotive is being refurbished and painted and the two items are expected to arrive at the park by March 2021,” English said.
In 2018, WFP had said that various rail memorabilia was going to be installed in Woss Heritage Park to honour the legacy of the Englewood Railway.
It was also a gesture by WFP to honour those that had lost their lives in forest accidents. There were also talks about converting portions of the rail bed into a trail in 2019.
The Englewood Railway was the last operating logging railroad in North America which was in service for more than 100 years. The 90 km line ran from Vernon Lake, through Woss, and past Nimpkish Lake Provincial Park to Beaver Cove.
In 2017, WFP announced the closure of the railway after three workers were killed in a derailment that took place on on April 20 that year.
