JACKET

Description: WOOL. NAVY BLUE. HAS FOLDED OVER COLLAR AND LAPELS. THERE IS A BUTTON HOLE ON UPPER LEFT LAPEL. FRONT CLOSES WITH THREE BRASS BUTTONS. EMBOSSED ON EACH BUTTON IS A BEAVER ON A BRANCH, BETWEEN THE WORDS "CANADIAN PACIFIC". THERE ARE TWO SIMILAR BUTTONS ON EACH CUFF, EXCEPT SMALLER. LEFT CUFF ALSO HAS 8 BRASS BARS SEWN ON VERTICALLY. THERE ARE TWO DOUBLE BESOM POCKETS ON OUTER RIGHT HIP. THERE IS ALSO A DOUBLE BESOM POCKET ON OUTER LEFT HIP, AND A WELT POCKET ON OUTER, LEFT BREAST. THERE ARE MATCHING POCKETS ON INSIDE OF COAT. INSIDE OF COAT IS LINED WITH BLACK SATIN, EXCEPT FOR POCKETS AND SLEEVES WHICH ARE LINED WITH IVORY COTTON. LINING ON INSIDE RIGHT OF JACKET IS FRAYED.

History: UNIFORM BELONGED TO DONOR'S GREAT GREAT UNCLE, ROBERT BISHOP, WHO WAS A CONDUCTOR WITH THE C.P.R.. DONOR'S GRANDMOTHER IS ELLEN WATERHOUSE. DONATION WAS MADE IN MEMORY OF DONOR'S MOTHER, VICTORIA BURNS, WHO PASSED AWAY FEB. 1999. ***UPDATE: IN DECEMBER 2012, COLLECTIONS VOLUNTEER LAUREN BARTHOLOMEW CONDUCTED ADDITIONAL RESEARCH INTO THE ARTIFACT AND ITS OWNER, ROBERT BISHOP. INFORMATION WAS GATHERED FROM EMAIL CONTACT WITH ROBERT’S GREAT NIECE NOREEN BISHOP, AND THE 1981 OYEN & DISTRICT HISTORICAL SOCIETY BOOK MANY TRAILS CROSSED HERE. IT WAS FOUND THAT ROBERT ERNEST “BOB” BISHOP WAS BORN IN DAVENPORT, NORTH DAKOTA ON MARCH 27TH 1903, AND IMMIGRATED TO CANADA IN 1910 WITH HIS FAMILY. THEY CAME TO HOMESTEAD IN EXCEL, ALBERTA. BISHOP STARTED WORKING FOR THE CPR IN 1923 AS A PART TIME JOB, AND ON NOVEMBER 12TH 1925 HE MARRIED MAY FLORA LITTLEFORD ON THE FARM IN EXCEL. IN ADDITION TO HIS RAIL JOB HE ALSO RAN THE STORE IN EXCEL. WHEN WAR BROKE OUT IN 1939, BISHOP BEGAN WORKING FULL TIME FOR THE CPR. HE LATER MOVED TO KELOWNA, B.C. WITH HIS FAMILY, WHERE HE PASSED AWAY ON NOVEMBER 19TH 1992. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONSULT THE PERMANENT FILE.