Johnson Canyon
Backcountry
Sightseers stand on one of the six log bridges built between 1910 and 1918 in Johnston Canyon, known then as “Johnson’s Canyon”.
Mt. Assiniboine
Backcountry
Mt. Assiniboine and Lake Magog. Known as the Matterhorn of the Rockies, the 3,618-metre-high mountain was first climbed in 1901 by James Outram.
Johnson Canyon
Backcountry
Bridges and staircases were built in Johnson Canyon–now known as Johnston Canyon–between 1910 and 1918. The creek and canyon is named after a prospector with the last name of “Johnston”.
Johnson Creek Canyon
Backcountry
A sightseer walks along one of the wooden bridges built in Johnson Canyon (Johnson Canyon) between 1910 and 1918.
Johnson Canyon
Backcountry
Lower Falls in Johnston Canyon (known earlier as Johnson Canyon) is the smaller of the two waterfalls along Johnston Creek, ca. 1920s. A pony trail to the Upper Falls opened in 1930.
Ice Berg Lake
Backcountry
The Tumbling Glacier and Berg Lake in Mount Robson Provincial Park. Mount Robson, the slopes of which can be seen in the background, is the highest mountain in the Canadian Rockies. It stands at 3,954 …
Yoho Glacier
Backcountry
the Yoho River, a tributary of the Kicking Horse River, begins at the toe of the Yoho Glacier in Yoho National Park, B.C.
Takakaw Falls, Yoho Valley
Backcountry
Takakkaw Falls, in Yoho National Park, B.C., is 380 metres high, making it the second highest waterfall in Canada.
Tower of Babel, Lake Louise
Backcountry
The Tower of Babel, a quartzite spire that overlooks Moraine Lake in Banff National Park, was first climbed in 1957.
Victoria Glacier and Mt. Lefroy
Backcountry
Victoria Glacier, Mount Lefroy and the Plain of Six Glaciers near Lake Louise in Banff National Park.
Mt. Sir Donald
Backcountry
Mount Sir Donald, located in the Roger’s Pass, stands 3,284 metres high. The mountain was named for Sir Donald Smith, 1st Baron Strathcona and Canadian Pacific Railway director. Smith drove the famed …
Giant’s Stairway
Backcountry
Giant Steps, also known as Giant’s Stairway, sits near the end of Paradise Valley in the Lake Louise region.
Seracs Illecillewaet Glacier
Backcountry
Mountaineers climb a serac on the 26-square-km Illecillewaet Glacier in Glacier National Park.
Mt. Resplendent
Backcountry
Climbers descend from the summit of Mt. Resplendent in Mount Robson Provincial Park during the 1913Alpine Club of Canada camp.
Lake Agnes
Backcountry
Lake Agnes in the Lake Louise region is one of the most-popular hikes in Banff National Park. The lake sits at an elevation of 2,135 metres. The Lake Agnes Tea House, which sits at the western end of …
Sunshine, Snowmobile on Brewster Rock
Backcountry
A snowmobile tows two skiers at Brewster Rock in the Sunshine Meadows regions in this 1950s postcard by Don Harmon, Byron Harmon’s son.
Tea Room, Lake Agnes
Backcountry
The Lake Agnes Tea House began as a shelter for hikers in 1901. Tea was first served in 1905, and the original building was replaced in 1981.
Swiss Chalet at Six Glaciers
Backcountry
The Canadian Pacific Railway built the Plain of Six Glaciers Teahouse in 1927. The hike to the teahouse gains 360 metres over 5.6 km.
Skiing near Mt. Temple Chalet
Backcountry
Four skiers climb the slopes near the Mt. Temple Chalet, which was completed by 1938, at what is now the Lake Louise Ski Resort.
Dog team on Lake Minnewanka
Backcountry
Dog sled races on Lake Minnewanka were an annual event. Banff packer Ike Mills helped to introduce dog sledding to the Canadian Rockies in the early 1920s.
On Saskatchewan Glacier
Backcountry
A pack horse train on the Saskatchewan Glacier during Byron Harmon’s 1924 expedition from Lake Louise to Jasper via the Saskatchewan Glacier and Columbia Icefield.
Dog sled at Mt. Assiniboine
Backcountry
Banff musher Ike Mills at Mt. Assiniboine. Mills hauled supplies and guests to lodges in the backcountry, including Assiniboine Lodge, which opened in 1928.
Mt. Fryatt
Backcountry
A wilderness camp in Mt. Fryatt region in Jasper National Park in the 1920s.
Lake McArthur
Backcountry
Hikers gather on the slopes near Lake McArthur, one of the lakes in the Lake O’Hara region of Yoho National Park, in the 1920s.
Lake O’Hara
Backcountry
Lake O’Hara sits at 2,020 metres elevation in Yoho National Park. It has drawn artists and photographers since the lake was named after Lieutenant-Colonel Richard O’Hara, who first visited the lake in …
Hole in the Wall
Backcountry
A group of hikers stand in The Hole in the Wall cave on Mt. Cory looking out over the Bow Valley and the Bow River.
Mt. Assiniboine
Backcountry
A small tipi tent used for backcountry camping in the Canadian Rockies, Mt. Assiniboine, ca. 1926.
Toboggan slide, Caribou Street
Banff Townsite
The Caribou Street toboggan slide held during the Banff Winter Carnival, 1924.
Government Bath
Banff Townsite
The Government Bath pool at the Cave and Basin Hot Springs in the 1930s.
Bow Valley
Banff Townsite
The Bow Valley and the Bow River looking northeast towards the Fairholme Range.
Banff Avenue
Banff Townsite
Banff Avenue and Cascade Mountain, 1919. The brick building, known as the Dave White Block, built in 1894, can be seen along the left side of the postcard.
Buffalo, Banff
Banff Townsite
Sir Donald, a bull bison that was brought to the Banff buffalo paddock in 1905, was one of the last plains bison born in the wild in Canada.
Banff Village
Banff Townsite
A view of the Banff townsite from the lower slopes of Mount Norquay, 1945.
Bow Falls
Banff Townsite
Bow Falls as seen from the viewpoint near the Banff Springs Hotel. Cascade Mountain can be seen in the background.
Bow River, Banff, C.P.R. Hotel
Banff Townsite
The Banff Springs Hotel first opened in 1888. The hotel, at that time constructed with wood, burned down in 1926. It was rebuilt with stone, beginning in 1928.
Mt. Rundle, Banff
Banff Townsite
Mount Rundle with hand-tinted colour as seen from the Vermilion Lakes northwest of Banff.
Sulphur Cave, Banff
Banff Townsite
The cave at the Cave and Basin National Historic Site. Three railway workers came across the cave, which was well known to local First Nations people, in 1883. The workers’ attempt to claim ownership …
Banff Avenue
Banff Townsite
Banff Avenue looking north from the intersection nearest the Bow River bridge towards the Mount Royal Hotel and St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church.
Government Bath House, Banff
Banff Townsite
The Government Bath House in Banff at the Cave and Basin, built between 1912 and 1914.
Bow River and Goat Mountain, Banff
Banff Townsite
Canoeists paddle on the Bow River upstream of the Banff townsite. The roof of the Sanitarium Hotel can be seen just above the trees in the mid-ground with Goat Mountain in the background.
Hot Springs & Bow Valley
Banff Townsite
The Banff Upper Hot Springs looking northeast into the Bow Valley past Tunnel Mountain on the left and Mount Rundle on the right.
Cascade Mountain
Banff Townsite
Cascade Mountain from the boat houses on the south bank of the Bow River upstream from the bridge.
The Hoodoos
Banff Townsite
The Banff hoodoos overlooking the Bow River gap between Tunnel Mountain and Mount Rundle.
Cave and Basin
Banff Townsite
The “basin” hot pool at the Cave and Basin in Banff with the original wooden bath house, 1928.
Yak
Banff Townsite
One of six yak brought to Banff in 1912 at the buffalo paddock east of the Banff townsite.
Village from Tunnel Mtn.
Banff Townsite
A view of Banff from Tunnel Mountain looking west towards the Massive Range, including Mount Bourgeau to the left and Pilot Mountain to the right.
Banff Springs Hotel and Bow Valley
Banff Townsite
The Banff Springs Hotel and the view towards the Fairholme Range from the northern slopes of Sulphur Mountain.
Toboggan Slide
Banff Townsite
A toboggan slide on Caribou Street during the 1924 Banff Winter Carnival.
The Corkscrew Drive
Banff Townsite
The Corkscrew Drive on Banff’s Tunnel Mountain covered 60 metres (200 hundred feet) in seven turns.
St. George’s In The Pines
Banff Townsite
St. George’s-In-The-Pines Anglican Church opened its doors in 1887 and is still in use today.
Mt. Norquay Ski Lodge
Banff Townsite
The Lone Pine Lodge at Mt. Norquay, Banff’s first ski hill, opened in 1940. Banff locals first began skiing at Mt. Norquay in 1926.
Government Bath House
Banff Townsite
The Government Bath House at the Cave and Basin as seen in the 1920s was designed by architects Walter S. Painter and Francis S. Swales. It was built between 1912 and 1914.
Homestead Hotel and Restaurant
Banff Townsite
The Homestead Hotel was replaced by the Homestead Inn in 1975, but the original dining room, which was built in 1930, is still in use.
Bow Valley and Mt. Rundle from Banff Chair Lift
Banff Townsite
A photo postcard of the town of Banff from Mt. Norquay by Don Harmon, Byron Harmon’s son, who continued his father’s line of postcards.
Championship Ski Jump
Banff Townsite
Banff championship ski jump could once be found on the slopes of Tunnel Mountain facing Cascade Mountain (image right) and the bison paddock.
Banff Chair Lift
Banff Townsite
Byron Harmon’s son, Don, added this photograph of the Banff Chair Lift to his line of father’s postcards in 1952.
Cascade Rock Gardens
Banff Townsite
The Cascade Rock Gardens, also known as the Cascade of Time Gardens, was built near the Banff National Park administration building in the 1930s.
Cascades of Time
Banff Townsite
Architect Harold C. Beckett envisioned the Cascades of Time Garden, built in the 1930s as a journey through the geological time periods using rocks from the different geological periods.
Cave and Basin Swimming Pools
Banff Townsite
The swimming pools at the Cave and Basin hot springs with the Government Bath House.
Swimming Pool. Banff Springs Hotel.
Banff Townsite
The outdoor swimming pool at the Banff Springs Hotel. The hotel, one of the largest resort hotels in Canada, was named a national historic site in 1988.
Administration Building
Banff Townsite
The Banff Park Administration Building, a federal heritage building, opened in 1936. It’s surrounding grounds covers 4.8 hectares and includes the Cascades of Time garden.
Banff Springs Hotel
Banff Townsite
The Banff Springs Hotel with a mounted policeman in his red serge uniform in the foreground. The Painter Tower, the centre tower, was the tallest tower in Canada when it was completed in 1914.
Sulphur Mountain and the Banff Springs Golf Course
Banff Townsite
Holes No. 3, 4 and 16 of the Banff Springs Golf Course, which opened in 1927, the Banff Springs Hotel and Sulphur Mountain.
Banff Springs Hotel and Club House
Banff Townsite
The club house at the Banff Springs Golf Course, built in 1927, now serves as a restaurant.
Windy No. 4 Green and Fairway
Banff Townsite
The No. 4 green and fairway at the Banff Springs Golf Course, designed by Stanley Thompson in 1928. The golf course first opened in 1911.
Banff Avenue from Bridge
Banff Townsite
Banff Avenue and the Bow River Bridge looking north towards Cascade Mountain, circa 1940s.
Upper Hot Springs
Banff Townsite
The swimming pool at the Upper Hot Springs on Sulphur Mountain, circa 1932.
Upper Hot Springs
Banff Townsite
The hot springs pool at the Upper Hot Springs sits at an elevation of 1,585 metres (5,200 feet). The bathhouse opened July 1, 1932.
Banff Avenue, 1940s
Banff Townsite
Banff Avenue in the 1950s as seen in this postcard by Byron Harmon’s son, Don Harmon.
Banff Avenue, 1930s
Banff Townsite
Banff Avenue and Cascade Mountain, circa 1934. The King Edward Hotel, which can be seen in the left side of the photograph was first built as a three-storey wooden structure in 1904.
Banff Avenue, 1920s
Banff Townsite
Banff Avenue, circa 1920s. The original Mount Royal Hotel, built in 1908, with its matching white towers can be seen in the midground of the photograph. Beyond that stands St. Paul’s Presbyterian Chur …
Banff Avenue, 1950s.
Banff Townsite
Banff Avenue and Cascade Mountain in a real photo postcard from the 1950s by Don Harmon, Byron Harmon’s son.
Banff Avenue from Bridge
Banff Townsite
Banff Avenue and the Bow River Bridge, constructed from concrete and stone and completed in 1921, looking north towards Cascade Mountain, 1934.
Cascade Mountain and Banff village
Banff Townsite
Banff Avenue and the Bow River Bridge in the 1920s. The bridge opened for use in 1921, replacing a narrow iron truss bridge.
Cascade Mountain
Banff Townsite
The Bow River Bridge opened in 1921. It was modelled after a design by Calgary architect Thomas Mawson, whose grand designs envisioned Calgary as Vienna on the Bow.
Banff Avenue in winter
Banff Townsite
Tipis line the median of Banff Avenue during the 1925 Banff Winter Carnival.
Banff Avenue, 1920s
Banff Townsite
Banff Avenue and Cascade Mountain, circa 1920s. A man on horseback can be seen in the foreground riding along the northbound lane.
Mountain goat
Banff Townsite
A mountain goat at the Banff buffalo paddock. The paddock also housed elk, moose, deer, even yaks, along with a herd of bison.
Cinnamon bear
Banff Townsite
A cinnamon black bear kept at the Banff Park Zoo in Central Park. The zoo operated from 1905 to 1937. The zoo held two black bears, a polar bear, cougars, and monkeys.
Banff Chair Lift
Banff Townsite
Byron Harmon’s son, Don, added this photograph of the Banff Chair Lift at Mount Norquay to his line of father’s postcards in 1952.
Buffalo
Banff Townsite
Plains bison, decedents of animals first brought to Banff in 1897 and in 1908, graze in the paddock at the base of Cascade Mountain east of Banff.
Skiing at Mt. Norquay
Banff Townsite
Two skiers on the upper slopes of Mt. Norquay ski area with Mt. Rundle and the town of Banff in the background in this photograph taken by Don Harmon, Byron Harmon’s son. This postcard is postmarked 1 …
Mt. Norquay Chair Lift
Banff Townsite
A skier rides the Mt. Norquay chair lift, which opened in 1948, in this 1952 photograph by Byron Harmon’s son, Don Harmon.
Ski jumping at Mt. Norquay
Banff Townsite
A ski jumper soars from the ski jump at Mt. Norquay. Austrian mountaineer Conrad Kain built the first ski jump in Banff on Tunnel Mountain in 1917.
On Field Hill.
Transportation
Passengers stand at the back of a train as it enters the Upper Spiral Tunnel.
Snow Peak Ave. Emerald Lake.
Transportation
A car drives along Snow Peak Avenue (Emerald Lake Road). Mt. Stephen can be seen in the background.
Great Divide Gate
Transportation
The gate at the Great Divide, the Alberta-B.C. border and the height of land that causes the rivers and streams to flow either east or west.
Snow Tunnel. Yoho Road.
Transportation
A car drives through a snow tunnel on the Yoho Road while two of the passengers look on from above.
Anthracite Hill. Banff-Calgary Highway.
Transportation
Cars on the Anthracite Hill on the Banff-Calgary Highway (now the Trans-Canada Highway) with Cascade Mountain in the background.
Near Bow Summit. Louise – Jasper Highway.
Transportation
The Louise-Jasper highway (now the Icefields Parkway) crosses the alpine meadow at Bow Summit. Bow Lake is visible beyond the road and Bow Peak and Crowfoot Mountain can be seen in the background.
Mt. Chephren. Louise – Jasper Highway
Transportation
The Louise-Jasper Highway (now the Icefields Parkway) passes through the forest with Mt. Chephren in the background.
Radium Hot Springs and Gateway.
Transportation
Bird’s eye view of Radium Hot Springs and the Kootenay National Park gateway.
Field-Golden Highway
Transportation
The Field-Golden highway (Trans-Canada Highway) as it runs along the steep cliffs of the Kicking Horse Canyon.
Castle Mtn and Auto Rd.
Transportation
What is now the Bow Valley Parkway passes through the forest towards Castle Mountain.
Golden, B.C.
Transportation
Golden, B.C. as seen from an overlook along the Banff-Golden Highway, circa 1930s.
Chateau. Lake Louise.
Transportation
An open tram on the Lake Louise Tramway approaches Chateau Lake Louise, circa 1920.
Mt. Rundle and Banff-Windermere Auto Road
Transportation
The Banff-Windermere Auto Road west of Mt. Rundle and the Banff townsite.
The Iron Gates Entering Sinclair Canyon
Transportation
The Iron Gates in Sinclair Canyon, Kootenay National Park, circa 1920s.
Mt. Whymper. Banff Windermere Auto Road.
Transportation
Mt. Whymper and the Banff-Windermere Auto Road through Kootenay National Park, circa 1920s.
On Auto Road to Moraine Lake.
Transportation
A car travels down the Moraine Lake Road, circa 1920s. Mt. Babel can be seen in the background on the left.
Banff Station
Transportation
Buses bound for Banff hotels, including the Mount Royal Hotel, sit outside the Banff train station in the early 1920s.
Three Sisters
Transportation
The Three Sisters near Canmore, east of Banff, were at one time within the Banff National Park boundaries. The boundaries were changed in 1930 to remove coal mining and limestone quarrying from the pa …
On Field Hill
Transportation
Locomotives pull an east-bound freight train up Field Hill in 1923 towards the top of the Kicking Horse Pass in Yoho National Park east of Field, B.C. The Kicking Horse River can be seen in the backgr …
Lake Louise rail depot
Transportation
The Canadian Pacific Railway station at Lake Louise. Construction of Canada’s transcontinental railway reached Lake Louise in the fall of 1883.
At Johnson Canyon, Banff
Transportation
The Bow Valley Parkway in 1931 at Johnston Creek and Johnston Canyon with Castle Mountain in the background.
Lake Minnewanka, Banff
Transportation
A car travels along the Lake Minnewanka Road in the late 1920s.
Mt. Edith
Transportation
A car travels west from Banff, ca. 1920s. Mt. Edith can be seen in the background.
Cathedral Peak
Transportation
A train approaches the Lower Spiral Tunnel entrance with Cathedral Peak in the background.
Railroad Y.M.C.A. Field, B.C., 1949
Transportation
The Y.M.C.A. in Field, B.C., also known as Mount Stephen House, with Mount Stephen in the background.
Lower Spiral Tunnel.
Transportation
A locomotive exits the Lower Spiral Tunnel with passenger cars still on the track above it.
Engine 5919
Transportation
Engine 5919, the last of the first series of ‘selkirk’ locomotives built in 1929, at the Field, B.C. station.
The Switchback. Yoho Road.
Transportation
A bus climbs the switchback on the Yoho Valley Road as it makes it way up from the Yoho River.
Castle Mtn. from Vermillion Summit, 1931.
Transportation
A car drives along the Banff-Windermere Highway towards the Bow Valley and Castle Mountain.
Entering Lower Spiral Tunnel and Mt. Stephen, Field, B.C.
Transportation
A colour-tinted image of a train approaching the Lower Spiral Tunnel with Mt Stephen in the background.