Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

CAN OF WATER

Date Range From

1978

Date Range To

1981

Materials

METAL, WATER

No. Pieces

1

Height

11.8

Diameter

6.3

Description

SILVER METAL BEVERAGE CAN, WITH WIDE, SINGLE-HOLE PULL TAB. UNOPENED AND FULL. PLAIN SILVER EXTERIOR WITH BLACK TEXT. ALONG TOP EDGE OF CAN TEXT READS “CP RAIL” TWICE, EACH BESIDE BLACK, GEOMETRIC LOGO. ENGLISH SIDE OF LABEL READS “DRINKING WATER” “10 FL OZ 284 ML” WHILE FRENCH SIDE READS “EAU POTABLE” “10 OZ FL 284 ML”. RUNNING VERTICAL, NEAR THE FUSED SEAM OF THE CAN, TEXT READS “PACKED BY CAPILANO SPRINGS CO. LIMITED, VANCOUVER B.C., CANADA” TWO VERTICAL BLACK LINES RUN ON EITHER SIDE OF THE SEAM. IMPRINTED ON BOTTOM OF CAN, “100” “336”. IMPRINTED ON TOP OF CAN, “S.V.P. LA CANETTE VIDE A LA POUBELLE” “5IL” “PLEASE DO NOT LITTER”. SURFACE OF CAN HAS MICRO-SCRATCHES ALL OVER, SCUFFING REFLECTIVE SURFACE. MOST SIGNIFICANTLY SCRATCHED AREAS CAN BE FOUND UNDER THE E IN “WATER”, ABOVE THE U IN “EAU”, ALONG THE WORD “PACKED” AND ALONG BOTTOM RIM OF CAN, THE BOTTOM RIM ITSELF BEING MORE DISCOLORED THEN THE REST OF THE CAN. BOTTOM OF CAN IS SIMILARLY TARNISHED IN PLACES. THE CAN’S SEAM HAS DIFFERENT FINISHING THEN REST OF THE CAN.

Subjects

CONTAINER

Historical Association

TRANSPORTATION

History

ON JUNE 10, 2020, COLLECTIONS TECHNICIAN KEVIN MACLEAN INTERVIEWED DARLENE ALDOUS REGARDING HER DONATION OF A REITHMAN SKETCH AND A CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY CAN OF WATER. ON HER ACQUISITION OF THE CAN, DARLENE STATED, “MY SON WAS BABYSAT BY A COUPLE, CON AND ETHEL LEINWEBER. CON WORKED ON THE COLD TRAINS...SO WHEN THEY CLOSED DOWN THE MAIN TERMINAL IN LETHBRIDGE HERE AND MOVED IT [TO] KIPP, THEY HAD A BIG PARTY AND ALL THE FAMILY OF ALL OF THE WORKERS GOT TO COME. WE GOT TO GO ON THE TRAIN, AND WE WENT ON A RIDE ON THE TRAIN ACROSS THE HIGH LEVEL AND BACK. EVERYBODY WAS GIVEN THIS CAN OF WATER AND EVERYBODY DRANK IT AS THEY WERE GOING ACROSS. BUT I WAS JUST SO AMAZED AT IT, THAT I JUST HUNG ONTO IT AND I HAVEN'T GOTTEN RID OF IT ALL OF THESE YEARS. IT'S GONE FROM ONE PANTRY TO ANOTHER- WHATEVER HOUSE I WAS IN, IT WENT IN THE PANTRY.” ON THE EVENT ITSELF, DARLENE ADDS, “OH IT'S A VERY GOOD MEMORY. THAT'S THE FIRST TIME I HAD EVER BEEN ON A TRAIN AND THEN TO GO ACROSS THE HIGH LEVEL ALSO...I DON'T LIKE HEIGHTS BUT IT WAS FANTASTIC...WE GOT TO GO INTO THE TOP OF THE CABOOSE. IT WAS A LOT OF FUN AND MY SON WAS ONLY THREE OF FOUR AT THE TIME. SO HE JUST HAD THE TIME OF HIS LIFE…[WE GOT ON THE TRAIN] AT THE OLD TERMINAL DOWNTOWN, WHERE THE HEALTH UNIT IS NOW…WE JUST DID A ROUND TRIP- WE WENT ALL THE WAY OUT OF TOWN AND THEN THEY BACKED UP AND CAME BACK.” “IT WAS BECAUSE THEY WERE CLOSING DOWN THE HEAD STATION HERE IN LETHBRIDGE. I REMEMBER THE STATION HERE IN LETHBRIDGE WHEN I WAS KID. WE USED TO GO AND MEET OUR GRANDFATHER, ON THE TRAIN AND PICK HIM UP, FROM THE PASSENGER... BUT I'D NEVER BEEN ON A TRAIN BEFORE. SO THAT WAS WHEN THEY MOVED THE STATION FROM DOWNTOWN LETHBRIDGE TO THE KIPP YARD.” ON THE LEINWEBER’S, DARLENE EXPLAINED, “CON AND ETHEL WERE REALLY FANTASTIC PEOPLE. THEY WEREN'T MY SON'S GRANDPARENTS BUT HE CALLED THEM GRANDMA AND GRANDPA AND TO HIM THEY WERE GRANDMA AND GRANDPA. IT WAS AN HONOR FOR THEM TO HAVE TAKEN US AS THEIR FAMILY TO GO ON THAT.” EXPLAINING HER ATTACHMENT FOR THE CAN, “FOR YEARS I'VE HAD IT FLOATING AROUND ALL OF MY HOMES…IT'S BEEN SITTING IN MY PANTRY, FOR YEARS AND, I JUST KEEP LOOKING AT IT AND THINKING- IT'S DIFFERENT. IT WAS BEFORE THERE WAS CANNED WATER OR BOTTLED WATER OR EVEN ACTUALLY CANNED POP. WHEN I GOT [THE CAN], IT WAS SOMETHING THAT WAS AMAZING TO ALL OF US WHEN WE WERE ON THE TRAIN GOING ACROSS THE HIGH LEVEL.” “IT MEANT SOMETHING. IT WAS A SPECIAL MOMENT IN MY LIFE, MY SON’S LIFE- CON AND ETHEL, THEY SHARED IT WITH US. AND IT WAS A SPECIAL MOMENT FOR LETHBRIDGE AND FOR THE RAIL. AND SO I KEPT IT. I'VE HAD PEOPLE ASK ME 'WHY DON’T YOU TURF IT', BUT I JUST COULDN'T DO THAT.” DARLENE ESTIMATED THE DATE OF THE EVENT AROUND 1978-1980. A LETHBRIDGE HERALD ARTICLE, PUBLISHED JUNE 29, 1981, RECORDS A SIMILARLY DESCRIBED PARTY CELEBRATING THE CPR’S 100TH ANNIVERSARY ON SUNDAY, JUNE 28, 1981. THE EVENT WAS ATTENDED BY 2,000 CPR EMPLOYEES, PENSIONERS AND THEIR FAMILIES, AND INCLUDED PASSENGER COACH TRAIN RIDES OVER THE HIGH-LEVEL BRIDGE, SPIKE DRIVING, HAND-CAR RACES, HORSESHOES AND A BARBECUE. LETHBRIDGE MAYOR ANDY ANDERSON ATTENDED, CONGRATULATING CPR FOR 100 YEARS AND THANKING CPR FOR LETHBRIDGE’S RAIL RELOCATION PROGRAM. CONRAD “CON” LEINWEBER PASSED AWAY ON APRIL 11, 1999, AT 78 YEARS. ETHEL LEINWEBER PASSED AWAY ON JUNE 23, 2008, AT 80. FOR MORE INFORMATION, INCLUDING THE FULL INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTION AND LETHBRIDGE HERALD ARTICLES, PLEASE SEE THE PERMANENT FILE P20200019001-GA.

Catalogue Number

P20200019002

Acquisition Date

2020-06

Collection

Museum

Less detail