Pictured here in 1931 is a Caterpillar crawler tractor handling a J.D. Adams Ltd. pull grader, during the construction of the Big Bend Highway in British Columbia.
This project followed the Columbia River though the Selkirk Mountain range from Revelstoke to Golden providing the B.C. interior a link to Alberta.
Work on the mountainous, rugged two-lane road had been sidelined due to the Depression, but resumed construction in 1930 using Relief Camp workers as well as National Parks Board personnel helping to complete the road by 1937.
By the early 1960s, the Rogers Pass Trans-Canada Highway route had opened supplanting the Big Bend Highway. Construction of the Mica Dam project in the mid 1970s also flooded several sections of the roadway rendering it unpassable.
This early vintage gas-powered Caterpillar crawler was equipped with a rare amenity – a cab! No such luck for the Adams pull grader operator.
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Interesting to note the several horse drawn wagons were content to follow along slowly behind the grading operation. From the look of the ‘mountain pit run’ gravel rolling off the grader mold board, they were right.
The Historical Construction Equipment Association 2024 events include Wheels & Tracks, held June 8-9, and the ‘Last Blast’ event on October 19.
Both events are held at the Simcoe County Museum, near Barrie, Ontario. To see more than 60 pieces of vintage construction equipment in action be sure to attend.
HCEA Canada is a proud Heritage Partner of the Simcoe County Museum. For more information, visit hceacanada.org.
