Description of Historic Place

The Canadian Northern Railway Station site includes a 1911, one and one-half storey train station, a 1919 section tool shed, and a 1918 watchman's shed, all situated on approximately 10 hectares of land in the east end of Camrose. The main building is a "Third Class" station constructed according to Canadian Northern Railway Plan 100-29 and features a hip roof, gable dormers, stucco exterior, a substantial baggage area extension, and wide eaves with large brackets extending along the trackside elevation. The two sheds are simple wood frame structures with red exterior walls and yellow trim.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Canadian Northern Railway Station lies in its architectural significance as one of the oldest and finest examples in Alberta of a standard plan, third class railway station and in its symbolic value as an emblem of the central role of railways in opening the province to settlement and agriculture.

In 1911, the Canadian Northern Railway (CNoR) constructed a "Third Class" station in Camrose according to the company's Plan 100-29. Plan 100-29 was the third of four "Third Class" station designs developed for the CNoR by influential architect Ralph Benjamin Pratt. Each of the "Third Class" stations designed by Pratt was distinguished by its hip roof - a unique feature that immediately branded the stations as CNoR constructions. The main floor of the building accommodated a waiting room and office, while the upper level contained living quarters for the stationmaster. The station also possessed a sizable, single storey wing that served as a baggage area. Initially, the building featured a shingled exterior as per CNoR architectural plans. In 1918, the Canadian Northern Railway was amalgamated into the Canadian National Railway (CNR); in 1937, the CNR stuccoed the exterior - a common practice by the company to standardize the appearance of its stations, some of which it had absorbed from the defunct Canadian Northern Railway and Grand Trunk Pacific Railway companies. Two separate ancillary buildings - a tool shed and a workingman's shed - were moved to the site in the early 1920s; they are consistent with the types of outbuildings constructed by the CNR during this period.

With the gradual disappearance of early train stations from Alberta's communities, buildings like the Canadian Northern Railway Station at Camrose have gained increased historic significance as structural reminders of the essential role that the railways played in establishing settlement and agricultural economy in the province.

Source: Alberta Culture and Community Spirit, Historic Resources Management Branch (File: Des. 1857)

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Canadian Northern Railway Station include such features as:
- mass, form, scale, and style;
- steeply-pitched cedar-shingled hipped roof over main station area;
- decorative roof ridge wood cresting;
- low-pitched, cedar-shingled gable roof over baggage area with very wide, open bracketed eaves;
- corbelled chimney;
- forest green and gold colouring of trim;
- gabled wall dormers on the front and back elevations;
- fenestration pattern and style, including nine-over-one double-hung sash units;
- original door pattern and style, including standard five panel interior doors;
- floor plan;
- open layout, wall and ceiling finishes of freight room;
- original mouldings, staircases, flooring, and fixtures;
- original artifacts associated with the site.

Section Tool Shed
- mass, form, and scale;
- red exterior with yellow trim;
- door and fenestration pattern.

Watchman's Shed
- mass, form, and scale;
- red exterior with yellow trim;
- door and fenestration pattern.