author
D. B. (David Blyth) Hanna
1858–1938
A Scottish-born railway leader in Canada, he turned a lifetime in rail service into a firsthand account of how the industry grew across Scotland and Canada. His memoir brings together practical experience, big personalities, and the everyday realities behind a changing transportation system.
1 Audiobook
Trains of Recollection Drawn from Fifty Years of Railway Service in Scotland and Canada, and told to Arthur Hawkes
by D. B. (David Blyth) Hanna
About the author
Born in Thornliebank, Scotland, on December 20, 1858, he emigrated to Canada in 1882 and built a long career in railways. He worked with the Grand Trunk Railway, later joined the Canadian Northern Railway, and eventually became the first president of the Canadian National Railways.
His best-known book, Trains of Recollection, was published in 1924 and presented as memories drawn from fifty years of railway service in Scotland and Canada, told to Arthur Hawkes. Rather than writing as a literary figure, he wrote as a seasoned insider, offering readers a personal view of the people, decisions, and rapid growth that shaped railway history.
He died in Toronto on December 1, 1938. Today, his work is especially valuable to readers who enjoy memoir, transportation history, and firsthand stories from the era when railways were transforming Canada.