Caption: The old railroad station at Inverness Cape Breton. A rare survivor.
Inverness was known for its coal back in the early 1900s. The community received a boost in commerce when the first railroad came to town from Port Hawkesbury back in 1901 in order to service the coal mine(s). Called the Inverness and Richmond Railway, plans were to run thru up the coast to Cheticamp, but it never did make it farther than Inverness.
The coal mines in town were owned by the CNoR. On Feb 1, 1924, the CNR leased the line, then purchased it in 1929.
The coal business eventually was exhausted in the area, and since it was no longer needed, the track from the Causeway at Port Hawkesbury up to Inverness was abandoned in 1986. Track was removed in 1989. It is now the Celtic Shores Coastal Trail.
The station lives on, in great shape, as the area's Mining Museum.
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