History and the logo development

The Canadian Pacific Railway was formed in 1881. The story of the railway is filled with history and achievement.

Canada's first Prime Minister, Sir John A. MacDonald, resolved to "build a Pacific Railway to unite the country". George Stephen, one of the founders of the railway along with Donald Smith and R.B. Angus, struck a deal with the government to build the railway. The job fell to William Cornelius Van Horne.

On November 7, 1885 Donald Smith drove the "last spike" connecting the Pacific Ocean to central Canada. Van Horne observed - "It was the end. And the beginning."

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A brief history of the railway.


Logo Development - from the begining
These, and all logos and designs on this Canadian Pacific Railway Archives web site are the property of the Canadian Pacific Railway. None of the images on the cprheritage.com web site may be reproduced without written permission of the Canadian Pacific Railway.

Companies go through many changes. With 119 years of history, Canadian Pacific Railway has had its share. Among the most visible to the public has been the periodic changes to the railway's logo; some discreet, others striking.

It all began in a printer's shop in 1886. With train timetables to run off, the printer rummaged through stocks of standard logos, pulled out a shield and added the name "Canadian Pacific Railway". Thus was the somewhat unostentatious birth of the CPR's first corporate logo. Note the use of punctuation in the name.

By the end of 1886, company officers wanted a visual link between the CPR and Canada. The beaver was added, along with a branch and maple leaves. The change proved intuitive. The beaver and maple leaf would later be officially adopted as Canada's national symbols.

In 1889, the off-the-shelf shield was replaced by a distinctive design the CPR could call its own. The shield was simplified and the beaver no longer had the branch and leaves on which to gnaw.

For the dawn of the '90s -- the 1890s, that is -- the beaver was given new artistic treatment, its tail raised slightly, and the lettering made bolder. Punctuation in the name was never again to be used, period.

Through the 1890s, the beaver and the "Canadian Pacific Railway" lettering underwent several discreet mutations.

In 1898, the artists finally laid down their brushes, leaving the shield and the beaver -- which had grown considerably in stature -- alone for 31 years, its tail overhanging the shield on all timetables.

When it came to the company's growing fleet of locomotives and freight cars, however, the artists went to work again in the 1917. They circled the beaver and shield with the words "Canadian Pacific", dropping "Railway", and reintroduced the maple leaf. Accident-free engineers had their names inscribed in the logo, which was affixed to their own assigned steam locomotive.

By 1929, the company's expansion called for a new look. The shield survived, but the beaver went. "Canadian Pacific" occupied the top of the crest, leaving room below for the symbol of the company's different interests -- a hotel crest, a ship, a truck, a telegraph pole, and for the railway, its new slogan: "World's Greatest Travel System".

Canadian Pacific called on its old friend, the beaver, again in 1946. By this time, Canadian Pacific was spanning the world and wanted to say so. The circle inside the shield remained, but the message was new. 'Modern' script-style lettering was introduced.

For the 1950s, the crest was brought to its simplest form, free of borders and raised points, and appeared on all Canadian Pacific vehicles.

By 1960, a more modern script-style lettering was introduced.

Once again, the beaver fell victim to a new age. Canadian Pacific felt its growing multi-faceted enterprise needed a symbol that could be adapted to its different businesses. The "multimark" was introduced in 1968 -- a triangle and semicircle with a square block signifying direction, global capability and stability. Canadian Pacific Railway became CP Rail.

The multimark reigned undisturbed for two decades, interrupted only in 1985 -- Canadian Pacific Railway's centennial year -- by the addition of steam and diesel locomotive images to link past and present eras. By 1988, only the words "CP Rail" remained.

With the dawn of the '90s -- this time the 1990s -- the railway expanded into the U.S., acquiring new rail interests. The word "System" was added to "CP Rail" to signify the railway's growing North American network.

Along with its corporate restructuring in 1996, the railway returned to its strong roots to readopt its original name, Canadian Pacific Railway Company. Now, to complete the identity change,the new CPR has reached back in time to the symbols that recall its proud heritage and represent its modern-day attributes. The railway's new corporate logo returns the beaver to its lofty position atop a shield with maple leaf motif, encircled by a band that incorporates the Canadian Pacific Railway name and the year 1881.