After the June 1905 news article, there is little in the years that followed, during which Karl settled in Winnipeg as a locomotive engineer with the Canadian Northern Railway. He regularly worked the route running between Winnipeg and Dauphin, located about 178 miles northwest. Today, the Dauphin station is a provincially designated historic site that now operates as a museum housed in the former baggage room. It’s considered Manitoba’s most beautiful train station, built in Château-style architecture.

But in between working the rails in Manitoba, Karl found himself about to embark on a new adventure, one announced in the local newspaper:

In this paper, we published a pleasant incident in the life of Mr. Karl Creelman, which will be read by many of his Colchester friends with great happiness in the new life trip that he has just undertaken.

What was this “pleasant incident”? Well, in the Winnipeg Tribune on April 23, 1907, it was announced under the Matrimonial News, “Creelman–Montgomery.”

Karl got married.

The home of Mr. and Mrs. James Montgomery, 206 Hargrave Street, was the scene of a very happy event on Tuesday when their second eldest daughter, Marjorie May, became the bride of Karl M. Creelman of Truro, N.S. The nuptial knot was tied by Rev. E.J. Stobo, B.A., B.D., of the Second Baptist Church in the presence of a large number of friends and relatives.

The bride entered the drawing room, leaning on the arm of her father to the strains of Lohengrin’s wedding march, played by Mrs. Swasbrick. She wore a lovely princess gown of white silk covered with net and trimmed with point lace. She carried a shower bouquet of white roses and lilies of the valley and was attended by her sister, Miss Grace Montgomery, who was prettily attired in a gown of white silk crêpe de chine trimmed with Swiss lace and appliqué, carrying a bouquet of pink roses.

The groom was supported by A.E. Evans of Halifax, N.S. His presents included a gold bracelet set with pearls for the bride and pretty gold bracelets for the bridesmaids.

At the close of the ceremony, guests adjourned to the dining room where they enjoyed a sumptuous repast set upon a table decorated with pink and white carnations. After the wedding breakfast, Mr. and Mrs. Creelman left for the East, followed by the good wishes of a host of friends.

The wedding gifts, numerous and costly, spoke eloquently of the bride’s popularity. Among them was a handsome locket and chain from her former associates in the superintendent’s office of the C.P.R.

Marjorie had been employed at the C.P.R. for seven years. The Winnipeg Telegram reported that, upon leaving her position, her colleagues presented her with a gold chain and an engraved locket in appreciation of her service.

The newlyweds stayed with Karl’s parents in Bible Hill. It was the new Mrs. Creelman’s first time in Nova Scotia, and the local papers shared that she was delighted with the province, and especially with Truro.

Shortly thereafter, Karl and Marjorie had their first child, a son, Karl Montgomery Creelman, born in Winnipeg on October 6, 1908. Sadly, a mere six weeks later, an announcement followed that infant Karl had died.

There’s mention of Karl again when he visited his parents in Nova Scotia after attending the 25th convention of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen in St. Paul, Minnesota, on June 6, 1910. However, it was noted in the paper that Karl “had not been in good health during the Fall.”

Then, on February 4, 1912, Karl and Marjorie welcomed another baby boy, Max Ashmore Creelman. But heartbreak visited the parents again, and, like his brother before him, Max died less than four weeks later on March 3, 1912. As a side note, Ashmore was also the middle name of Karl’s sister, Mattie (formally Martha Ashmore Creelman), a small detail that makes the loss feel even more personal.

Dear reader, there is no information about what happened to these two babies, so I can’t comment on why they died, only on how very sad it must have been.

In the spring of 1912, Karl once again paid a visit to his family in Bible Hill. The news headline read “Home from the West,” noting how glad Karl’s friends were to see him again. At the end of their visit, it was reported that the following spring he would come “East again” after attending the 1913 Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers (B.L.E.) conference in Montreal.

I can’t find a record of Karl and Marjorie travelling to Nova Scotia as initially planned in the spring of 1913. I suspect this is because they were busy being parents to daughter Margaret Irene Creelman, born in Winnipeg on May 12, 1913.

And so, dear reader, after all his miles and all his triumphs and losses, Karl’s road turned toward home, marriage, and parenthood. He’d ridden the world alone, but this time, the path ahead called for a bicycle built for three.