Stretches of railway line managed from a divisional point were known as divisions, and were further divided into segments known as subdivisions.
The logistics of steam locomotives required numerous facilities for reversing, servicing, and supplying water and fuel for passing trains.
Divisional points were historically significant in the westward colonization and development of Canada, supplanting the Hudson's Bay Company trading post in a number of cases as a focal point for economic activity and urbanization.
Technological changes, most significantly dieselization, led to a decline in the importance of divisional points and a reduction in the need for on-site crews, leading to some becoming ghost towns, while others survived due to economic diversification.
In the coal and steam era, a divisional point would include such amenities as a substantial passenger station, freight and baggage sheds, a roundhouse, water tank, coaling and sanding facilities, and repair shops for locomotives and rolling stock.