Holloway

Holloway, Saskatchewan, Canada

Unincorporated Railway Point
On the CPR “Soo” Line

Located at NW Section 1, Township 6, Range 12, W2

Latitude- 49º 26' N
Longitude- 103º 30' W

Elevation 1909 ft.


Part of My Dad's 1927 Map
Shows Holloway 3 miles west and almost 4 miles North of Midale Saskatchewan

Midale School #908 shown bottom right
Holloway would have been in this district I believe

No Post Office known.
No Elevator known.

There was a Holloway Minnesota, and some immigrants from this area, would have settled here.
so possibly the origin of the name?

After some research Dec 2018, Now I believe the railway Point was named after Edward Holloway.
Info below from a 1924 newspaper article about this man.
He was CPR Locomotive Foreman, located in Estevan, shown in 1916 and 1921 census, and 1924 article.
He worked on the CPR building the line thru the rockies, as well as the prairies.
He started 43 years before 1924
He started age 13, in 1875, as an engine wiper, with the Grand Trunk Railroad in Orangeville, ON
in 1881 he came west with many other young men to work on the CPR west of Winnipeg.
Signed on as a fireman
Went out with original gang and laid steel to Field BC
Spring of 1882 they were beginning work on the Medicine Hat bridge.
Apr 2, 1882 He gained his reputation from a feat of swimming the Saskatchewan River with a tow line to the other side.
President Van Horne himself offered $25 and a bottle of Hudson Bay rum to the man that volunteered for the job
He was the one, and Van Horne tied the bottle of rum around his neck.
It was so cold when he got to the other side, he drank half the bottle of rum.
He slept soundly for 3 hours.
meanwhile everyone was waiting for him including Van Horne.
When he awoke he pulled another line over, then a raft., and the bridge was underway
Men were bitten by snakes around Medicine Hat, and rum was used for medicinal purposes.
He claimed rum was the main reason the railroad was built
In 1885 he returned to Toronto
There he was the First Man to operate a rotary snow plow.
The Rotary Plow was a true “Canadian Invention”
First plow per Edward Holloway was a Fitzgerald Rotary Plow.
His first plow had problems, and building the 2nd he went broke.
He sold the patent to Edward Leslie, of Orangeville ON, who turned them out for the CPR
Canadian Patent # 438008, Oct 7, 1890? shown in Edward Leslie's name
US Patent- #380809 patented Apr 10, 1888, E. Leslie, Rotary Excavator for removing snow
Application filed August 31, 1887. Serial No. 248,367. (No model.)

One newspaper article says the Leslie Brothers made their first rotary plow and tested it in the Parkdale yards of the CPR in 1884.
Now other sources on the net say a Toronto Dentist J. W. Elliot in 1869, invented the rotary plow, and sold the rights to Orange Jull of Orangeville ON
who then sold out to Leslie Brothers, Edward Leslie and John Leslie, (see bios below) and they formed the Rotary Steam Shovel Manufacturing Co in Paterson NJ, USA
Another newspaper article from 1907 says the first guy to build the rotary plow was his friend Ned Leslie, from Orangville, a machinist in the railroad yards.
Now Ned's plans were unscrupulously taken and used by another individual and that fellow claimed the invention as his own, and the Jull Rotary Plow was born.
Ned never recovered, and died in a mental home.
Which source is right. If we believe this man operated the first one, I tend to believe his story.
Edward Holloway operated one of these plows in the East, and later transferred to the West.
He was later stationed at Broadview SK
They moved to Estevan in 1901
They lived with their family in 2 box cars for 6 years until they saved enough money to build a house.
He was Engineer of a locomotive at the time of Sir John A. MacDonald's funeral, and it was draped in black his wife had sewn up.
All engines in the CPR fleet were draped in black crepe in his honour.
I would think his descendants would be proud of this man's work

Edward “Edwin” D. Holloway
b- May 1860 (1860 on headstone), age 61 in 1921, in England
birth reg July-Sept 1861 in Marylebone reg dist. which is looking more accurate as date working above verifies
d- Sept 17, 1946 in Hospital in Regina, age 86
buried in Estevan City Cemetery
Immigrated in 1867
son of Edward Holloway (Bricklayer) and Mary Ann Holloway, nee Peterson
married- Elizabeth Lennie Samson Oct 16, 1883 in Dufferin, ON (surname on marriage record- Hollowday)
b- Apr 16, 1865, in Scotland
d- Sept 22, 1945 in Estevan
buried in Estevan City Cemetery
Immigrated in 1875
Edward and Elizabeth lived at 1022 3rd st in Estevan in 1921
1891 they had 3 children:
-James Holloway, age 6
-Frank Holloway, age 3
-Edward Holloway (Jr), age 2
all children born in ON
1906 2 more children:
Maude Holloway age 18
Stanley Holloway age 13
both born in ON
Niece Reta Samson lived with them



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