To the best of my knowledge, my father never tried golf, but he was conscientious about picking up and preserving interesting documents related to railways - particularly the Canadian Pacific Railway.
Given the document code on this folder about the Banff Golf Course, I am guessing the prices were effective in 1949 and that the photos and text were put together a few years before that, especially ...
'It has five radio-active springs ... '
Bathing in radioactive springs seems undesirable today. Radioactive patent medicines for internal consumption were sometimes advertised as health-promoting supplements earlier in the century.
The golfing folder is reproduced farther below.
* * *
But first, a Digression ...
Also, in 1949, this American movie was produced, promoting scenes in the 'CPR Rockies'.
Canadian Pacific was made with the complicity of the CPR.
The movie begins with fleeting colour footage of CPR steam-powered mountain operations
and it is clear that they provided historical context and hardware for the effort.
In fact, if you know and collect history movies like I do ...
this must have been the movie which The National Dream was based on!
Unlike that CBC-NFB co-production, Canadians can view Canadian Pacific today.
It is available on YouTube and that's where the following images originate.
In honour of Canada 150, here are a few scenes from our history ...
Things are going poorly for the CPR in the Canadian Parliament.
At the right margin, Van Horne (standing) waits to tell the MPs
that, by gum, he'll find a way through the mountains!
According to Van Horne (and you will find this in Hansard)
some guy named Hannibal found a way through the mountains
... so it can be done, it will be done.
(I think Hannibal must have worked as a civil engineer on the Central Pacific Railroad.)
Because of her choice of Ottawa as Canada's capital ...
The movie includes a flashback to Queen Victoria's wedding
to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.
At End of Track.
Tom Andrews (left) - who just found the way through the mountains - with Van Horne.
Tom has just joked that he hasn't been hiding out in his private car like Van Horne has.
Our ace Canadian surveyor (who sounds like an American) is about to reveal the route!
He states he will draw some maps for Van Horne before he leaves.
* * *
Later ...
With the pay car late
(bet that never happened either)
the workers have downed their tools in protest,
and have repaired to the elaborate saloon-tent set up at CPR End of Track.
'Ten barrels of whiskey have arrived!'
(You'd've thought the CPR would have checked that waybill more closely.)
'Drinks on the house!'
In the saloon (maybe for a cup of tea) a dour killjoy Scot observes:
'The booze was sent to keep fools drunk and to cripple the railroad!'
This 'fake news' is 'edited' with gunplay and two murders.
To keep the drunks railroaded and to cripple the fools ...
To keep the railroad crippled and to fool the drunks ...
Railroad documentaries: See also, Blazing Saddles.
Above, the End of Track saloon proprietor, and his friend Mr Winchester,
asks for patrons' cooperation to maintain peace, order and good government.
Early Canadian social programs:
The End of Track has a Doctorin'-Woman, MD.
She provides health care for the injured workers in the CPR Hospital Car.
* * *
I shall leave out the CPR verisimilitude 'Mountain Indian Attack' for brevity.
* * *
hurry as they must
to relieve the End of Track
on a four-four-oh
External view from fireman's side:
Another guy with a Scottish accent to Mr Van Horne:
'He's giving her all she's got!'
* * *
Back to Golfing at Banff Springs Hotel.
The map below looks roughly southwest toward the Banff Springs Hotel.
The text below the map is enlarged and reproduced below for easier reading.
Converted into 2017 dollars, 'per person':
It would cost about $32 for a round of golf.
A season of golf would be $950.
This undated colourized postcard, made from a black and white photograph, looks roughly southwest.
In the foreground, you can see the CPR station.
Its wooden water tower is partially hidden by trees near the right edge of the photo.