Canadian Geographic issue features Canadian railways - past, present and future
Canadian Geographic is an excellent magazine published six times a year by the Royal Canadian Geographic Society.Their July/August issue, currently on local newsstands, features as the main article: – “Glances from a train – Are Canada’s railways poised for a second golden age?”. It is a fascinating article by Monte Paulsen that chronicles his journey by train from coast to coast with specific sub-articles on key places and their importance to railway history – past, present and future.It is 23 pages long and includes 31 photo images taken by Tobin Grimshaw.It is very well written and illustrated and worth reading. Included in the issue is a separate fold-out map produced by Canadian Geographic of “Canada’s Steel Roads” as they exist today. A version of the article (which may have all of the text in it) with 6 additional photographs is available at Canadian Geographic’s website by clicking here.
Announcing the last run of the Guelph Junction Express!
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The Guelph Historical Railway Association (GHRA) is active in the Guelph, Ontario area where they are actively restoring CNR Northern 4-8-4 steam engine #6167 as well as a CPR caboose/van. The Guelph Junction Express has been operated as a tourist/dinner train operation by Destiny Tours over the Guelph Junction Railway using diesel engines provided by the Ontario Southland Railway for several years. However, the Guelph Junction Express will cease operations this month. We reported earlier on these organizations in this TRHA News article in 2009 when the GRHA organized a fan trip on the railway.
The Guelph Historical Railway Association has again worked with Destiny Tours to organize a fan trip. This trip will be the final run of the Guelph Junction Express tour train and will happen on Saturday August 13th, 2011. Proceeds will benefit the furthering of GRHA's fine work. The Express will go out in style with a rare-mileage trip over all of the Guelph Junction Railway's trackage. The run will include photo run-bys, tours of the Ontario Southland Railway (OSR) shops as well as viewing of historical displays. For more information, see the GHRA trip flyer by clicking here.
In the video below, we find the Guelph Junction Express making its first run on August, 21st, 2008.
Weekend Report: Bumper crowds and a new deck for the Flat Car!
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This past weekend turned out to be a busy one from various perspectives. On Saturday, one crew of volunteers was busy at many different tasks inside the roundhouse. On Sunday, another crew of volunteers began the process of replacing the wooden deck on our recently acquired flat car. They can be seen in the photos above by Michael Guy shaking down the process as they completed the first 5 feet of the 40 foot car. In the pictures below, we find volunteers continuing the sorting out of materials for future use and also view am example of the signage recently applied to the silver air pressure tanks to provide visitors with directions.
While there was a steady stream of riders on our miniature railway on Saturday (see photo at the lower right). However, rider levels were lower than normal possibly due to continued hot weather. Sunday was much less hot and humid and quite pleasant. The park was busy all day and after the show let out we needed both trains to clear the line up. We had people lined up to ride having already bought tickets and also a line to purchase tickets. It was an impressively large group of people.
Posting by Russ Milland; Pictures by Michael Guy and Russ Milland.
Field Trip: West Coast Railway Heritage Park – Part 3
The Roundhouse and Conference Centre (continued)
There is also a second floor area with a board room and office space as well as a mezzanine area across the front of the interior from which visitors can view the collection from above. The rolling stock normally on display in the roundhouse is easily moved out for any large event. This leaves 21,000 square feet of space. The YouTube video below produced by the Heritage Centre to promote the use of this space provides some great views of the Royal Hudson and the structure of the roundhouse.
Click here to read part 4 of this series of TRHA News postings.
Posting by Russ Milland; Video by the West Coast Railway Heritage Centre
Field Trip: West Coast Railway Heritage Park – Part 2
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In this post, we highlight the recently opened new CN Roundhouse & Conference Centre at the West Coast Railway Heritage Park. This Roundhouse and an accompanying turntable are not restorations but rather are purpose built new structures. The Roundhouse was developed with the interior being outfitted with a complete set of radial tracks. But these tracks are embedded in a smooth concrete floor with rubber inserts such as those used in our park being used to provide a safe surface. The CPR Royal Hudson #2860 (shown below) is the centrepiece of the collection displayed in the roundhouse.
In the image at the lower left, Don Evans, my host and the CEO and President of the West Coast Railway Association, stands beside a large steam engine bell that graces a display area just inside the doors of the roundhouse.
Click here to read Part 3 of this series and watch a video about the Roundhouse.
Field Trip: West Coast Railway Heritage Park – Part 1
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My primary goal from a TRHA perspective in my recent trip to the West Coast was to visit the West Coast Railway Association’s Railway Heritage Park in Squamish, B.C. Don Evans, their President and CEO, was kind enough to spend most of a day with me so that I could fully explore their heritage park and understand what they had accomplished and learn from their experiences in doing so.
At their website, they describe their history and purpose as follows:
“The origin of the West Coast Railway Association (WCRA) can be traced back to 1958 when the steam engine was in its last days. As history was passing before their eyes, the pioneers of the Association, ten in all, began meeting on a regular basis and started acquiring a collection of rail cars and artifacts. Over the years the Association has grown and evolved but its purpose remains the same: to collect, preserve and restore railway cars and artifacts and operate a licensed railway. The passion of the Association is the enjoyment of the railway by sharing experiences through the Heritage Park, railway excursions and railfan fellowship. To members of the Association, railways are not in history books or in glass cases - they are a joyful and exhilarating experience.”
The West Coast Railway Association has amassed the largest collection of railway rolling stock and artifacts in Canada outside of Quebec with 95 items in its collection of engines and rolling stock. Most of this equipment is showcased at their 12 acre heritage park website in Squamish, B.C. which is nestled between the Squamish River and the CN mainline. The attached sketches above were displayed in one of their passenger cars and show some of the original conceptual ideas for the park. The image at the lower right is the one found in the brochure provided to each visitor to guide them as they explore the park. The railway track shown around the perimeter of the park is a 7 ½” miniature railway much like ours. The image at the lower left is the latest Google satellite image of the park.
In future news postings we will further explore the Heritage Park in pictures and prose. Click here to read part 2 of this series of News postings.
Field Trip: Stalking the Whistler Rocky Mountaineer!
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Earlier this month, I vacationed for a week in the wonderful resort town of Whistler in British Columbia. While there, I couldn't resist doing a little trainspotting.
The Rocky Mountaineer company is well know for running tourist passenger trains through the Rocky Mountains with the focus on providing memorable experiences. The railway line in this area ran originally from Squamish at the head of Howe Sound to Whistler and beyond. Freight cars were barged and ferried from Vancouver to Squamish. In 1956, that all changed when a very scenic railway line was built between the mountains and the sea from Vancouver to Squamish eliminating the sea link.
In past years, B.C. Rail operated a tourist train from Vancouver to Squamish using one of the famed CPR Royal Hudsons that they had restored to operating condition. My daughter and I were fortunate to ride that train many years ago all the while standing on the back platform of the observation car being regaled with railway facts, figures and history by railway buffs who joined us.
Today the rail line is owned by the CN and the Rocky Mountaineer operates a purpose-built and nicely painted trainset using modern diesels from Vancouver to Whistler via Squamish. Note that one of the passenger cars shown in the attached images however is an original CPR tourist car which allowed passenger to view the passing scenery without windows getting in the way. This car is part of the collection of the West Coast Railway Association and is leased by them to the Rocky Mountaineer Company.
Note also that a CN rail truck precedes each train to ensure that there are no dangerous rockfalls or other obstacles on the roadbed as the train often is clinging to the side of rock walls.
The station in Whistler is actually one of the Whistler Resorts (shown in the attached image) built in very recent times on a small lake at the south end of Whistler. The station part is a covered area of the resort at one end where passengers can embark and disembark on buses which take them into the heart of Whistler itself for a few hours before the train returns.
Weekend Report - Launching our first Roundhouse Park Weekly Tour
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As we announced several days ago, we held our first weekly (Saturday) tour of Roundhouse Park as an additional experience that we are offering to the public. In the image above, we catch the tour in progress. This augmented our other attractions such as the miniature train ride and tours of our steam engine #6213's cab.
Meanwhile volunteers continued to work within the roundhouse. In an image above, we see the nearly completed frames which will hold interpretative plaques for each of the engines and other rolling stock in our collection. Work also proceeded to build the necessary pit covers to allow safe public access to the U33 Diesel Cab simulator. With a bit more work next weekend, we will be able to add it to our attraction list for the weekend whenever sufficient volunteers are available.
The caboose had its left cupola base side structure final dry fitted and the cupola structure was set in place. This is good news as it means we can apply the sheathing screws to the left side next week. With the structure in place below below the cupola to support it, we were finally able to remove the metal angles at the outside of the cupola metal skin to get a good look at the cupola's corner posts. Below we see some of the corrosion as found in the pillars. Below, we also find one of our volunteers working on the inside bracing of the caboose. As noted elsewhere, this was originally a wood caboose which was subsequently sheathed in steel by the TH&B railway.
(Ralph Beaumont is an avid railfan from Ontario who reports on his railway adventures in B.C. as follows - Russ Milland)
I was fortunate to spend some time in British Columbia this summer, with a great deal of train watching and riding based out of Revelstoke. This remains a true railway town, with Rogers Pass to the east and Eagle Pass to the west. The Revelstoke Museum is a must-see, and there's even of U.S. logging 2-6-2 steam engine on display in nearby Three Valley Gap.
During the trip we saw steam at Port Alberni on Vancouver Island, in Summerland and during the June trips of CP's #2816 Royal Hudson from Calgary to Golden and return. Unfortunately there was no steam as advertised at the B.C. Forestry Museum in Duncan (they were waiting for the boiler inspector to show up), and CPR #2816 was unfortunately not available for scheduled July trips due to it being sidelined for unexpected repairs. Still there was lots of action and new sights to see as shown in the attached photos:
1: Louisiana USA's Calcasieu Long Leaf Lumber standard gauge 2-6-2 was moved in January 2005 to her unlikely new home at Three Valley Gap just west of Revelstoke, BC. The new display roundhouse and grounds there contain numerous business cars and displays.
2: The Rocky Mountaineer pays visits to Revelstoke four days per week (twice eastbound and twice westbound) and make for a great diverson from the major freight activity. Here's the train at the three tunnels just west of Glen William (west of Revelstoke).
3: Pan shot of CPR Royal Hudson #2816 on her June 23 westbound trip approaching Canmore, B.C.
5: In July I was fortunate to have a cab ride on CP's F Unit #4107 over Roger Pass from Golden to Revelstoke. It was supposed to be on Royal Hudson #2816, but although I was disappointed that #2816 was out of service with unexpected repairs, the view from the F unit's cab was spectacular. Here is a shot as we approached a snowshed in Albert Canyon.
6: A couple of weeks later the heritage train returned from Vancouver and I rode the tail end on the Mount Royal business car from Salmon Arm to Revelstoke. Thanks to CPR and the Revelstoke Railway Museum for making these trips possible, as part of a museum fundraising effort. Here we are exiting the most easterly of the three Clanwilliam tunnels, a few miles west of Revelstoke.
Beginning this Saturday - Weekly tours of the TRHC and Roundhouse Park!
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The Toronto Railway Heritage Centre is pleased to offer weekly guided tours of the TRHC and Roundhouse Park beginning Saturday, July 16 at 12:30 PM. This tour will allow visitors to experience the rich railway heritage contained within this most historic site and the enormous changes that have occurred there in the last 150 years. The tours are researched and conducted by railway historians Derek Boles and Thomas Blampied, both published authors of Toronto railway history.
Theatregoers attending the 2 PM Saturday matinee of the Railway Children will have ample time to enjoy the tour and a ride the Roundhouse Park Miniature Railway before entering the theatre.
Please join us every Saturday during July and August and learn about the fascinating story of the historic property that contains the TRHC. There is no cost for the tour other than a voluntary donation to the Toronto Railway Heritage Centre.
Field Trip: Chronicling the demolition of the ALCO plant in Schenectady, N.Y.
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David Howard is a fellow member of the Niagara chapter of the Canadian Railway Historical Association. The American Locomotive Company (ALCO) was a famed manufacturer of steam and subsequently diesel locomotives as well. After amalgamating with a number of locomotive companies, they focused their operations into two plants in Schenectady, New York and Montreal, Quebec. Dave Howard shares his unexpected recent experience at their Schenectady plant location.
"I was traveling from the Boston area to back home mid Friday afternoon, and elected to break the drive up by spending Friday night in Albany, NY. I'd never been to the site of the American Locomotive Company in Schenectady, so decided to look it up on Google to determine the location, and visit it on the morning of Saturday, May 21st, 2011. Imagine my surprise as I was the only witness that morning to photograph a significant piece of locomotive history being demolished. This is the site where the Union Pacific "Big Boys" were built from 1941 to 1944, perhaps in these buildings.
The images of the demolition are as follows:
A view of one of the erecting halls. Note the faded "American Locomotive" logo in the upper right.
On the East end, I noticed some heavy construction equipment operating in the background, and signs of a demolition in progress.
A few minutes later, a cloud of ALCO dust erupted from the East end, as a large portion of the roof came crashing down. It migrated across the road, and enveloped my car, so a bit of ALCO came home with me!
By mid-morning most of the East end was gone, a worker attempted to hose down the dust, while a Testa Corporation pair of jaws continued to munch away at the remains.
A pick-up truck parked beside my car while I was photographing the action. When I went back to my car to change cameras and film, the occupant (the foreman of the demolition company) wanted to talk with me. He was concerned I was from the city or other government agency, photographing the dust cloud as ALCO fell. After I explained I was just a hobbyist recording the passing of some history, we had an interesting chat about the demolition and the history of the building."
Posting by Russ Milland; Story and photos by David Howard
Field Trip: Northern Ontario Railroad Museum & Heritage Centre - Capreol, Ontario
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Dave Lawrence is a member of the TRHA Simulations team who developed the Toronto Rail Lands Simulation featured in our Railway Simulations Centre exhibit. On June 11th, 2011 Dave visited the Northern Ontario Railroad Museum & Heritage Centre. Located about 40 kilometres north of Sudbury, Capreol developed around the Capreol Railway Station as Capreol was a major divisional point on the CNR. The town has established this museum in a large house plus an exhibit in Prescott Park. Several featured items in the park are:
CNR 4-8-2 Muntain Type U-1-F steam locomotive:
In 1967, Harold Prescott, then the Capreol mayor, accepted from CNR the donation of this engine as a momento of Capreol's history as a railroading town. Mr. Prescott, a CNR engineer, had operated this same engine. Because of their distinctive noses, these engines were affectionately known as "Bullet-Nosed Betties”.
CNR Caboose #77562:
This was originally built of wood in 1899 likely as a box car. It is distinctive in that it is approximately 4 feet longer than the standard CNR wood-sheathed caboose. It is painted "Morency Orange" and has a green leaf with the "Serves All Canada" slogan. One of the accompanying images shows the coal-fired stove in the caboose.
CNR Rules Instruction Car #15019:
This car was originally built by Pullman Standard in 1912 for the Inter Colonial Railway of Canada and named "Stratacona." Originally it was built as 10-2 sleeper and operated in passenger service. It was later configured as a rules instruction car which traveled along the line updating the knowledge of CNR employees about the rules and testing them on their mastery of the rules.
For more about the museum, visit their website by clicking here.
