--- title: "The Last Spike | History of Canada 1867 to Present" description: "The Last Spike was the final ceremonial spike driven into the CPR in 1885, marking rail completion, westward expansion, and Canadian unity." canonical: "https://fiveable.me/history-canada-after-1867/key-terms/the-last-spike" type: "key-term" subject: "History of Canada – 1867 to Present" unit: "Unit 2" --- # The Last Spike | History of Canada 1867 to Present ## Definition The Last Spike was the final ceremonial spike driven into the Canadian Pacific Railway on November 7, 1885. In History of Canada after 1867, it marks the completion of the transcontinental railway and a major nation-building moment. ## What It Is The Last Spike is the name given to the final ceremonial spike driven into the Canadian Pacific Railway on November 7, 1885. In History of Canada 1867 to Present, it stands for the moment the transcontinental rail link was officially completed, connecting eastern Canada with British Columbia by rail. The ceremony took place at Craigellachie, British Columbia, where Sir Donald Smith drove the spike. It was not just a symbolic photo opportunity. The event marked the end of a huge construction project that had been pushed across mountains, rivers, forests, and rough weather in order to make Confederation feel real across the country. The CPR had been tied to politics from the start. After British Columbia joined Confederation, a rail connection to the rest of Canada became part of the promise that linked the province to the new nation. The railway project therefore became more than a transportation line. It was a public test of whether Canada could actually hold together as a country over a huge distance. Building the line was messy and expensive. Workers dealt with difficult terrain, dangerous conditions, financial strain, and labor conflict. Chinese laborers were crucial to the work in the western sections, especially in the hardest stretches, but they faced discrimination and much riskier working conditions than many other workers. That makes the Last Spike both a success story and a reminder of the unequal labor behind nation-building. The meaning of the Last Spike also goes beyond the ceremony itself. By finishing the CPR, Canada gained a faster way to move goods, people, and resources across the country. The railway helped open the West to settlement, strengthen trade, and give federal leaders a way to show that Canada could expand westward as a connected nation instead of a loose group of regions. ## Why It Matters The Last Spike matters because it is one of the clearest symbols of Canadian nation-building after Confederation. If you are studying how Canada grew from a new Dominion into a more connected country, this term gives you a concrete event to anchor that story. It helps you explain three big course themes at once: transportation, westward expansion, and national identity. The CPR was not just a railway. It was a state-backed project that linked political promises to real infrastructure, and the Last Spike marks the point where that promise became visible. It also helps you talk about contradictions in Canadian development. The same railway that encouraged settlement and trade was built through harsh labor conditions and discrimination, especially toward Chinese laborers. So when you use this term, you can show both progress and inequality in the same historical moment. In essays or discussions, the Last Spike is often a useful piece of evidence for arguments about how Canada used infrastructure to unify the country and assert control over the West. It gives you a specific date, place, and action that you can connect to larger changes in the late 1800s. ## Connections ### Canadian Pacific Railway The Last Spike is the ceremonial finish line of the Canadian Pacific Railway, so the two terms are inseparable. If you are describing the railway itself, focus on the route, construction challenges, and political purpose. If you are using the Last Spike, you are pointing to the completion moment and what it symbolized for Canada. ### [Sir John A. Macdonald](/history-canada-after-1867/key-terms/sir-john-a-macdonald) Macdonald matters because federal leaders pushed the CPR as part of the post-Confederation nation-building project. The Last Spike is linked to the political vision that made the railway possible, even though the ceremony itself featured Sir Donald Smith. It is a good reminder that the project was driven by both politics and business. ### [Chinese Laborers](/history-canada-after-1867/key-terms/chinese-laborers) The Last Spike is often taught alongside Chinese laborers because their work was essential to completing the western sections of the CPR. This connection helps you move beyond a simple success story and recognize the people whose labor made the ceremony possible, even though they were treated unequally and faced dangerous conditions. ### [prairie provinces](/history-canada-after-1867/key-terms/prairie-provinces) The CPR helped make settlement and economic growth in the prairie provinces much more practical by linking the West to eastern markets and government power. The Last Spike marks the moment that rail connection became real, which is why it is often used when discussing the opening and development of the prairies. ## On the AP Exam A quiz question might ask you to identify the Last Spike from a photo, a date, or a description of the CPR being completed. In a short answer or essay, you would use it as evidence that Canada was trying to turn Confederation into a working national system, not just a legal agreement. If you get a source-based question, connect the Last Spike to themes like westward expansion, transportation, immigration, or national unity. If the prompt asks about consequences, mention that the CPR made shipping goods faster, encouraged settlement in the West, and strengthened federal control over the country. If the question asks for deeper analysis, bring in the labor side too, especially the role and treatment of Chinese workers. A strong response usually does more than say it was a symbolic event. It explains what the symbol stood for and why a railway completion mattered in a country as large as Canada. ## the last spike vs Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway is the full rail line and construction project, while the Last Spike is the final ceremonial spike driven to mark its completion. If a question is about the route, labor, or economics, it is probably about the CPR. If it is about the completion moment or the symbol of unity, it is about the Last Spike. ## Key Takeaways - The Last Spike was the final ceremonial spike driven into the Canadian Pacific Railway on November 7, 1885. - It marked the completion of the transcontinental rail link that tied eastern Canada to British Columbia. - The event became a symbol of Canadian unity, nation-building, and westward expansion after Confederation. - The CPR brought major economic benefits, but it was also built through difficult terrain, financial pressure, and unequal labor conditions. - When you use this term, connect the ceremony to the larger story of how Canada tried to turn geography into a connected country. ## FAQs ### What is the Last Spike in History of Canada after 1867? The Last Spike was the final ceremonial spike driven into the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1885. It marked the official completion of the transcontinental railway that connected eastern Canada to British Columbia. In this course, it stands for a major nation-building moment after Confederation. ### Was the Last Spike the actual last piece of rail built? Not exactly. It was the ceremonial final spike, which made the completion of the CPR official and symbolic. The physical work of building and finishing the line had already involved many stages, but this moment was used to signal that the rail connection was done. ### Who drove the Last Spike? Sir Donald Smith drove the Last Spike during the ceremony at Craigellachie, British Columbia. His role made the event especially memorable as a public symbol of the railway's completion. The ceremony highlighted the business and political interests behind the CPR. ### How did the Last Spike affect Canada? It represented the completion of a rail link that boosted trade, encouraged settlement in the West, and made the country feel more connected. It also helped strengthen the idea that Canada could expand and unite across a huge geographic space. That is why the event shows up in both transportation and nation-building topics. ## Related Study Guides - [2.3 The Canadian Pacific Railway: Construction and Significance](/history-canada-after-1867/unit-2/canadian-pacific-railway-construction-significance/study-guide/iCbFuzhC1MlaHBcy) ## About This Document Canonical Fiveable pages are available as Markdown at the same path plus `.md`. - [llms.txt](https://fiveable.me/llms.txt): index of Fiveable's sections and URL patterns - [llms-full.txt](https://fiveable.me/llms-full.txt): complete subject and unit listing - [MCP server](https://fiveable.me/mcp): call Fiveable as tools instead of fetching pages (`https://fiveable.me/api/mcp`) - [MCP server for AP teachers](https://fiveable.me/mcp/teachers): a teacher's classes, assignments and AP-rubric grading (`https://fiveable.me/api/mcp/teacher`) ## Structured Data ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"LearningResource","@id":"https://fiveable.me/history-canada-after-1867/key-terms/the-last-spike#resource","name":"The Last Spike | History of Canada 1867 to Present","url":"https://fiveable.me/history-canada-after-1867/key-terms/the-last-spike","learningResourceType":"Concept explainer","educationalLevel":"AP® / High School","about":{"@id":"https://fiveable.me/history-canada-after-1867/key-terms/the-last-spike#term"},"audience":{"@type":"EducationalAudience","educationalRole":"student"},"dateModified":"2026-07-03T02:21:33.837Z","isPartOf":{"@type":"Collection","name":"History of Canada – 1867 to Present Key Terms","url":"https://fiveable.me/history-canada-after-1867/key-terms"},"author":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://fiveable.me/editorial#content-team","name":"Fiveable Content Team","url":"https://fiveable.me/editorial","parentOrganization":{"@id":"https://fiveable.me/#organization"},"member":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Amanda DoAmaral","sameAs":["https://www.linkedin.com/in/adoamaral"]},{"@type":"Person","name":"Becky Bahr","sameAs":["https://www.linkedin.com/in/becky-bahr-b52743132"]}]},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Fiveable","url":"https://fiveable.me"}},{"@type":"DefinedTerm","@id":"https://fiveable.me/history-canada-after-1867/key-terms/the-last-spike#term","name":"the last spike","description":"The Last Spike was the final ceremonial spike driven into the Canadian Pacific Railway on November 7, 1885. In History of Canada after 1867, it marks the completion of the transcontinental railway and a major nation-building moment.","url":"https://fiveable.me/history-canada-after-1867/key-terms/the-last-spike","inDefinedTermSet":{"@type":"DefinedTermSet","name":"History of Canada – 1867 to Present Key Terms","url":"https://fiveable.me/history-canada-after-1867/key-terms"}},{"@type":"FAQPage","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"What is the Last Spike in History of Canada after 1867?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"The Last Spike was the final ceremonial spike driven into the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1885. It marked the official completion of the transcontinental railway that connected eastern Canada to British Columbia. In this course, it stands for a major nation-building moment after Confederation."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Was the Last Spike the actual last piece of rail built?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Not exactly. It was the ceremonial final spike, which made the completion of the CPR official and symbolic. The physical work of building and finishing the line had already involved many stages, but this moment was used to signal that the rail connection was done."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Who drove the Last Spike?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Sir Donald Smith drove the Last Spike during the ceremony at Craigellachie, British Columbia. His role made the event especially memorable as a public symbol of the railway's completion. The ceremony highlighted the business and political interests behind the CPR."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"How did the Last Spike affect Canada?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"It represented the completion of a rail link that boosted trade, encouraged settlement in the West, and made the country feel more connected. It also helped strengthen the idea that Canada could expand and unite across a huge geographic space. That is why the event shows up in both transportation and nation-building topics."}}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"History of Canada – 1867 to Present","item":"https://fiveable.me/history-canada-after-1867"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Key Terms","item":"https://fiveable.me/history-canada-after-1867/key-terms"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Unit 2","item":"https://fiveable.me/history-canada-after-1867/unit-2"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"the last spike"}]}]} ```