Our history begins in 1891-1893 when Daniel Corbin built The Nelson & Ft. Sheppard Railroad to link Spokane, WA with Nelson, BC

In 1898 the NFTS Line was acquired by Great Northern Railway, which eventually became Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railroad Company.

The line continued operations to an interchange with Canadian Pacific Railway until the 1980’s when the rail between Salmo, BC and Nelson, BC was abandoned. Rail services to Salmo, BC continued.

In 1995 the track between Columbia Gardens, BC and Salmo, BC was sold by BNSF and became International Rail Road Systems (IRRS). Shortly thereafter, the track between Parks Siding, BC and Salmo, BC was abandoned.

In 2010 the IRRS shortline was acquired by Kanopi Holdings Ltd. and was renamed back to its original name - The Nelson & Ft. Sheppard Railway Co. Ltd. (NFTS).

present day

From 2010 to the present day, Kanopi Holdings has heavily reinvested in its track infrastructure to ensure that the railroad can safely and efficiently service its customers.

In 2018 NFTS opened a reload facility in Columbia Gardens, BC to serve new customers needing better access to US markets via the BNSF railroad network. Over the last decade, rail volume on the NFTS has grown significantly via both switching traffic with existing customers and via the reload facility.