The 6060 in Toronto in 1977, before it came to Calgary. Photo: Robert Taylor
Bullet-Nosed Betty and the J Lead
The story behind an abandoned Calgary rail line.
Curious Calgary is a mini-comics series by Sam Hester that can be read online—and/or printed at home and folded into a zine! The entire comic fits onto a single page of 8 ½ by 11 paper. All you need is a printer.
Download this comic, print it out and follow these instructions for how to fold and cut it. A how-to video is at the bottom of this page.
Sam's son, Alec, helped research and write this comic.
Additional notes from Alec
The 6060 was built mostly by women at Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW) in 1944, as most of the men who worked at MLW were overseas fighting in the Second World War. CN presented the locomotive to the people of Alberta in 1980 as a gift for Alberta's 75th anniversary and gave it the new name "The Spirit of Alberta." The historic locomotive is being returned to operating condition by the Rocky Mountain Rail Society, which is seeking donations for its restoration.
The J Lead was abandoned in 2014. The "Railway Street" in Deerfoot Meadows that once paralleled the J Lead is the only Railway Street/Avenue in Calgary.
Sam Hester is a Calgary-based graphic recorder and longtime indie comics creator.
