A drawer to the past: 1960s P.E.I. train logs found in desk at old Emerald Junction Station

A piece of the Island's rail history was uncovered recently at the former train station in Emerald Junction: Train logs dating back to the 1960s.

For years now, the station has been the home of the Bedeque Bay Environmental Management Association.

Recently, employee David Allan made the discovery, while looking for a piece of equipment.

He thought what he was looking for might possibly be inside two drawers that were nailed shut.

"I was just kind of expecting them to be empty," said Allan.

"I didn't really think a whole lot of it. I figured if the drawer was sealed shut, that they probably took everything out."

He was able to saw through the nailsand found a dozen train logs,from 1961 to1971.

"It was quite exciting," said Allan.

"And just to think how many years it's been since anybody's seen them, like my boss would sit in the chair next to these two drawers for 15 years and not even know what she was sitting beside."

The logs were covered in thick, sand-like dust,and mostly containedfreight traffic and employee records with some passenger information.

"Some days there's hardly any people travelling, and there are some days that are really busy days, so it would be interesting to find out what was going on around those days that were really busy," said Allan.

Allan isn't sure what will become of thembut has returned the logs to the drawers until a suitable place for storage or display can be secured.

"It's just nice that people will be able to observe it again, that the history will not be hidden anymore," said Allan.

"It's just been an amazing experience, to find them."

Rail travel for passengers ceased on the Island in 1968 whilefreight operations continued until 1989.

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