. As one can see in the picture at the upper left, the roundhouse has a vast expanse of roof. Roughly half of the roof is being re-waterproofed as weather allows. . The three museum stalls will rely on a pair of original Richardson Ventilators for heat and fume extraction. In the photo at the right above, we find one of these reconditioned units on its way back up onto the roof above stall 15. . Story by Mike Guy; Photos by Michael Guy and Dave Wetherald
Restored Watchman's Shanty Returns to Roundhouse Park!
...... Click on each picture for a closer look! . Recently, the watchman's shanty was returned to Roundhouse Park after being fully restored by Tom Murison. The three pictures above are some close up views of the exterior and interior of the completed shanty. In the pictures below, we see the shanty being loaded onto the trailer for the trip to the roundhouse and the shanty after its journey from Oakville resting near the Don Station in Roundhouse Park awaiting final placement. . Story by Russ Milland; Pictures by Tom Murison
...... Click on each picture for a closer look! . The TRHC's miniature steam locomotive was moved into the newly cleaned and painted roundhouse blacksmith's shop today. In the picture at left, we find Dave using the newly installed chain hoist to lift the locomotive from a rolling stand onto a more secure elevated assembly track. The locomotive and its tender are seen together for the first time in the middle picture. TRHA Director Michael Guy is sitting on the tender in the engineer's position. Finally in the right hand picture, we see the engineer's view of the cab interior. . Story by Michael Guy; Pictures by Michael Guy and Dave Wetherald
...... Click on each picture for a closer look! . The museum's collection of railway equipment includes Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo Caboose #70. Currently it is being stored outside while renovations to the roundhouse are underway. The protective coverings have been temporarily removed allowing us to bring you these pictures of the unrestored caboose. The history of this caboose is captured in the Collections section of this website. It says ..... . "This steel-sheathed, woodside caboose was constructed in 1921 by the TH&B Railway in its Aberdeen (Hamilton) shops using some components from caboose #51 acquired in 1907 from the Michigan Central Railroad Its present appearance came about in the 1950's when steel sheathing was added. Around 1954-1955 it received the yellow paint scheme already being applied to their boxcars since early 1952. The TH&B chose yellow and black from the colours of the Tiger Cats football team in Hamilton. ........ Click Here for more information ...." . NOTE: If you have pictures of this caboose in operation please contact Russ at trainz@cogeco.ca
... Click on each picture for a closer look! . The four pictures above all show the Central Heating Plant (CHP). The top two pictures are from 1929. The picture in the lower left is from 1931. The right hand picture was taken in the 1950's. . In October 1928, the Toronto Terminals Railway began building the Central Heating Plant at the northwest corner of York Street and Fleet Street (now Lakeshore Boulevard). The new facility replaced the old Toronto Hydro Scott Street plant, which was expropriated by the Toronto Terminal Railways (TTR) for the building of the railway viaduct. When the CHP was completed in 1929, it was the largest such facility in Canada. The building housed eight boilers and was 275 feet long and 60 feet wide. There were two smoke stacks, each 232 feet high and later extended by 100 feet. The plant was fuelled with coal brought in on a Canadian National siding that led from the High Line. At its peak, the CHP could produce 330,000 pounds of steam per hour or an average of 600 million pounds annually. . The plant provided steam heat piped through underground tunnels to a wide variety of railway facilities including Union Station, the CNR and CPR express buildings flanking the station and the CPR John Street roundhouse, as well as supplying heat for individual passenger cars stored in the coach yard. The steam used for the direct steaming process in the roundhouse's resident steam locomotives also came from this source and was piped over each stall. The CHP also heated the Royal York Hotel, the Dominion Public Building, the Postal Delivery Building and the CN/CP Telecommunications building at Front and Simcoe Streets. Later the plant was converted to natural gas. In the 1980s the Toronto Terminals Railway decided to purchase their heating capacity directly from a commercial supplier and the Central Heating Plant was demolished, with the stacks tumbling down on June 17th, 1990 as described in a previous post. Even today, a system of tunnels radiates from the site of the CHP to Union Station and other buildings. . Story by Derek Boles, TRHA Historian; All images from City of Toronto Archives
From the Archives - Smoke Stack Demolition in 1990
On June 17th 1990, from his vantage point high atop the Gardiner expressway, which was closed for the occasion, photographer Norm Betts recorded the demolition of the two smoke stacks of the Toronto Central Heating plant. This coal-fired plant produced steam to heat much of the downtown core including Union Station, the Royal York Hotel and the John St Roundhouse. A network of steam pipes ran underground through tunnels, many of which are still there today. . In the first four pictures, we see the demolition of the western smokestack. . Click on each picture for a closer look! ...... .
The final three pictures show the eastern chimney coming down with a great view of the Lakeshore Blvd and Bay St intersection and downtown as it was eighteen years ago.
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In our next news item tomorrow, the story of the Central Heating Plant will be told.
......... Click on each picture for a closer look! . In the picture at upper left we find (from left to right) Richard, Michael G., Jason P., James and Dave them grouped around our miniature steam locomotive which is of course now relocated to the machine shop in the roundhouse. They formed yesterday's work team. In the next picture, the new storage rack is being carefully measured by Richard before cutting timbers to complete the structure. In the next picture we find Jason continuing to clean and polish our engine lathe. Finally in the rightmost picture we can see the newly painted wall in the blacksmith's area where our new miniature steam locomotive will be completed. We also find Michael G. and James working to build a door for this opening to help seal off this area. . A bonus addition for the blacksmiths (shop courtesy of Arno) is an old but excellent 1.5 ton chain hoist which is now hanging from the original overhead beam and dolly. It fits perfectly and looks like it was there forever. This hoist will be essential when the time comes to remove the locomotive boiler for the paint stage of construction. . Story and pictures by Russ Milland
From the Archives - Toronto's 1st Union Station - Part 8 of 8
We wrap up this series with a list of the passenger train arrivals and departures from Union Station in June of 1868.
. ARRIVALS . .
DEPARTURES Railway Companies . GWR = Great Western Railway (trains terminated at the GWR's Yonge St. Station) GTR = Grand Trunk Railway NRC = Northern Railway of Canada (trains terminated at the NRC's City Hall station) . By Derek Boles, TRHA Historian
...... Click on each picture for a closer look! . Today, our steam engine was successfully moved today from our assembly shop space in Markham, Ontario, Canada to our machine shop space at the roundhouse. In the picture at left above, we see the engine and the cab in Dave Wetherald's van ready to leave the assembly shop. In the middle picture, we see the engine being lifted into the roundhouse thanks to the generous assistance of the contractors working at the roundhouse. Finally in the right hand picture we see the steam engine resting comfortably in the roundhouse machine shop. It will now awaits its being reunited with its tender and then a subsequent partial disassembly for painting. . Story by Russ Milland; Pictures by Dave Wetherald
...... Click on each picture for a closer look! . Just when you think you have an almost finished steam engine and tender, you are challenged with the need to work up all of the water and steam lines and associated fittings. You quickly discover that this work seems to take a lot longer than one expected. This was my experience with completing what looked like a finished engine of my own that I had bought from a fellow modeler. . Our "tender men" have just invested the needed time and energy and have completed the "plumbing" for our steam engine tender. In the pictures above you can view some of their handiwork. In the picture at the right, you will find a complete view of all of the plumbing required to bring fuel oil and water to the front of the tender where flexible hose connections will bring these essential fluids to the engine itself. As you can see, we have fitted valves in various spots to allow us to control the flow of these fluids and to drain the tender tanks if necessary. . The tender is now ready to be shipped out to the roundhouse where it will be temporarily united with the steam engine which will be arriving there as well in the next few days from our other assembly facility. The next step will be to disassemble both to be able to ship the appropriate parts out for painting using a powder coating paint process. . Story by Russ Milland; Pictures by Michael Gibbon
From the Archives - Toronto's 1st Union Station - Part 7 of 8
Click on the picture for a closer look! . The above illustration shows the site of the 1858 Union Station, now buried under 17 feet of landfill that supports the railway viaduct built for the present Union Station in the 1920s. Although all the railway tracks using Toronto's first Union Station have since been replaced and realigned, GO Transit and VIA Rail continue to offer passenger service along the original routes. These are now all owned by Canadian National Railway except for the Union Station Rail Corridor between the Don River and Bathurst Street, which is owned by GO Transit. Many of the original right of ways still exist in the following forms:
The Ontario, Simcoe & Huron Railway route now hosts GO service between Toronto and Barrie.
The Great Western Railway route is used for the GO Lakeshore West corridor as well as VIA trains for Niagara Falls, London and Windsor and the daily Amtrak train to New York City.
The Grand Trunk's Western Division now carries GO trains to Georgetown and VIA trains to Guelph, Kitchener, London and Sarnia.
The Grand Trunk's Eastern Division hosts the GO Lakeshore East corridor as well as VIA's numerous trains between Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal.
Next TRHA Union Station Tour on Saturday, February 28th, 2009
...... Click on each picture for a closer look! . The TRHA offers tours of Union Station on the last Saturday of each month at 11 a.m. Cost is $10 each payable on arrival for the tour. Reservations are not necessary and those interested should meet by the Traveler's Aid counter in the centre of the Great Hall at 10:50 a.m. For more about these tours, click here.
From the Archives - Toronto's 1st Union Station - Part 6 of 8
Click on the picture for a closer look! . The two tenant railways at Union Station were apparently not satisfied with the facility. The Northern Railway opened its own terminal just west of Brock Street in 1861. The Great Western Railway moved into its own station at the foot of Yonge Street in 1866. In 1868, the Northern Railway also opened City Hall station on the Esplanade west of Jarvis Street. At that time Toronto's City Hall was located in the structure that is now enclosed within the northern end of the building housing the St. Lawrence Market. Some of the Northern's best customers were farmers bringing their agricultural products for sale at the market. As a convenience for their passengers, both Great Western and Northern trains continued to stop at Union Station on the way to their own terminals. . In the early 1870's, the Grand Trunk decided to build a much larger Union Station in the same location. In 1871, Toronto's first Union Station was demolished and a temporary station was erected west of Simcoe Street. This facility served for two years until the second Union Station opened on July 1st, 1873. It was at the time the most lavish train station ever built in Canada and is shown in the illustration above. This facility will also be the topic of a future installment of this column. . By Derek Boles, TRHA Historian
Click on each picture for a closer look! . This past weekend at the Roundhouse, there was a productive work session with Lance, Wilson, Jason, Ron, Bob, Richard, and James forming this Saturday's work team. Lance and Wilson tackled the main challenge this weekend - the clearing and cleaning of the old triangular shaped blacksmith area for the new miniature steam engine's arrival. This space was being used to store paints and solvents. The space (seen in its final splendour in the middle left picture above) is required next week as the locomotive will likely be moved into this space next week. There the work on the locomtovie will be completed and the engine united with its tender. . Elsewhere, Ron, Richard, Wilson and Lance began the construction of an additional module for the skid storage by sorting through the unusable pieces to get a frame up and in place. The partially completed frame can be seen in the middle right picture above. . Bob and Jason continued cleaning the lathe testing three methods: a mild organic paint remover, a rust remover, and a paint thinner as shown in the picture at the upper left. . In the upper right photo, we see that the new doors for bays 26 and 27 are now complete. . Story by Russ Milland; Pictures by James Rasor and Lance Gleich
From the Archives - Toronto's 1st Union Station - Part 5 of 8
Click on the picture for a closer look! . There was thought to be no photograph of this first Union Station, however the illustration above was recently found in the National Archives in Gatineau, Quebec. It is a stereograph image dated about 1860 and is looking west, similar to the view of the Armstrong watercolour. In fact this photograph may very well have been taken by Armstrong and used as the basis for his painting. This is also the same Armstrong who headed the Armstrong, Beere & Hime photographic firm that was responsible for the 1857 panoramic photos of the city. William Armstrong will be the topic of a future installment of this column. . The first era of railway building in Canada West (Ontario) ended about 1859, a reaction to a financial depression that had begun two years earlier. There were no new railway companies entering Toronto for at least another decade. However, the existing railways continued to improve their Toronto facilities as Canada prepared for nationhood and the city assumed its role as the capital of the new province of Ontario. While the 1858 Union Station impressed Torontonians when it first opened, the facility was soon inadequate to handle Toronto's expanding population and increased railway traffic. By 1868, a year after Confederation, there were 24 trains a day using the station. . By Derek Boles, TRHA Historian
From the Archives - Toronto's 1st Union Station - Part 4 of 8
Click on the picture for a closer look! . The illustration at the right above is a circa 1860 watercolour by William Armstrong that has been reproduced in almost every book about Toronto history and depicts the first Union Station looking southwest. Armstrong used artistic license to incorporate a number of interesting details into his work. Just south of the tracks can be seen the shoreline of Toronto's waterfront, with Grand Trunk passengers cars stored on a siding. The uniformed gentleman with the walking stick standing under the overhang is probably the first stationmaster. The family in the centre of the picture is enjoying a picnic on an overturned crate while awaiting their train. Possibly they are recently arrived immigrants waiting for a connecting train to take them to a smaller agricultural community. . Above them in the distance can be seen a railway brakeman engaged in the dangerous but then standard practice of standing on top of the cars and using hand signals to communicate to the engineer while the train is being assembled. The woman on the left illustrates the propensity for new world artists to include First Nations people in their scenes to provide a touch of the exotic for the European audiences who purchased these prints. In the far distance can be seen the Northern Railway grain elevator that was located at the foot of Portland St. between Bathurst and Brock (now Spadina Ave.) Streets . There were two separate structures comprising the station and both can be seen in the illustration. The far building housed the dining room, telegraph office and ladies waiting room. The nearer building contained the baggage facilities and possibly the men's waiting room as separate facilities for the genders were maintained in railway stations well into the 20th century. The station also included a barbershop, a tradition that has continued in Union Station up to the present time. . By Derek Boles, TRHA Historian
From the Archives - Union Station and the Model Railroad Club of Toronto
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Click on brochure or each picture for a closer look! . TRHA plans to develop a model railroad depicting the Toronto Rail Lands to likely be located within Union Station as part of its plan for the Toronto Railway Heritage Centre. It will not be the first such model railroad to be located there. From 1938 to 1945, Model Railroad Club of Toronto developed and operated such a model railroad in Union Station. After 71 years, the Club still thrives today in the Liberty Village area. Here is an excerpt from their extensive history to be found the their website ( http://www.modelrailroadclub.com/ ) .
"On January 30, 1938, a small group of model railroaders met in the basement of Harry Ebert. From those humble beginnings came the Model Railroad Club of Toronto. In April 1938, the Club found and leased Room 470, a 16 foot by 165 foot space in Toronto's Union Station. Within five years the Club had built a credible O gauge layout. More incredible is that it was constructed through the early years of World War II, when both manpower and supplies were in short supply due to the war effort." . "After World War II, the railways required the Union Station space the Club occupied, so a hunt for a new home was on. In January 1946, the Club moved to its present location in the basement of 171 East Liberty Street (formerly 37 Hanna Avenue), a former munitions factory. Over the years, a great many have belonged to the Club and enjoyed themselves through fellowship with others that share their passion for the hobby. For many, membership at the Model Railroad Club of Toronto has been a lifelong commitment." . The black and white pictures above are from their Union Station period. The colour pictures above were taken on their current model railroad. As per the above brochure, the Club will be holding open house on Sunday, Feb 15th, Monday, Feb 16th (Family Day) and Sunday, Feb 22nd. Take the opportunity to visit their comprehensive website for more information about the club, their history and the Open House events. . Story by Russ Milland; Pictures from the Model Railroad Club of Toronto Website.
