Description of Historic Place

The Canadian Pacific Railway Station is a one-storey, wood frame building situated on 0.878 hectares in the Village of Paradise Valley. Constructed circa 1929, the station is a simple, small-scale building featuring horizontal wood siding and a cedar-shingled gable roof. The station sits adjacent to an Alberta Wheat Pool grain elevator which is not included in the designation.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Canadian Pacific Railway Station lies in its excellent representation of standard railway station architecture and in its symbolic value as an emblem of the central role of railways in opening the province to settlement and agriculture.

In 1929, the Canadian Pacific Railway completed work on a line between Marsden, Saskatchewan and Paradise Valley, Alberta. With the arrival of steel, the agricultural infrastructure of Paradise Valley boomed; at the height of its prosperity, the small community boasted six grain elevators. As Paradise Valley was a modestly populated settlement at the terminus of a branch line, the CPR opted to construct a very humble depot to serve the community. The station was built circa 1929 according to plan H-14-38A, a standardized design scheme for simple, portable stations that were erected in settlements requiring only basic - and possibly temporary - railway services. This modest wood frame building consisted of three small rooms - a waiting room, office, and agent's quarters - and was built by the CPR to facilitate grain and supplies handling. It was also used to coordinate mail and telegram services. In the early 1990s, the Canadian Pacific Railway ended all train service to Paradise Valley and the station was closed.

With the gradual disappearance of early train stations from Alberta's communities, buildings like the Paradise Valley Canadian Pacific Railway Station have gained increased historic significance as structural embodiments of the essential role that the railways played in establishing settlement and agricultural economy in the province. The station at Paradise Valley possesses particular value as a rare example of a small-scale, portable train depot.

Source: Alberta Culture and Community Spirit, Historic Resources Management Branch (File: Des. 2247)

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Canadian Pacific Railway Station include such features as:
- mass, form, and scale;
- horizontal wood drop siding painted brown;
- cedar-shingled gable roof and metal chimney stack;
- original floor plan;
- fenestration pattern and style, including single and paired multi-pane original windows;
- pattern of doors;
- original interior elements, including V-joint horizontal panelling, fir flooring, station agent's office, stove, and artifacts original to site.