Field Trip: Vintage Diesels on the Ontario Southland Railway

The 60 Year Survivor

Dave Howard of the Niagara Division of the Canadian Railway Historical Association provides us with the photos below of vintage diesels on the Ontario Southland Railway (OSR). We recently reported on the inaugural run of another one of their vintage diesels, FP9u #1401, in an earlier posting.

Dave reports:

"These images were shot in June 2013, shortly after the OSR restored their recently purchased cab unit #6508 for shortline freight service. For a picture of the unit in the original CNR paint scheme, click here.

The 60 Year Survivor (above):

Some diesel locomotive designs are timeless, such as the second locomotive in this consist, OSR (Ontario Southland Railway) #378, a typical EMD 1951 built GP7. The lead unit #6508, a GMD 1954 built FP9u “Cab” unit, is exceptional rare to seen in operation, as these were built primarily to replace steam locomotives on passenger trains, and most scrapped except a few retired to museums. After a career with CNR, then VIA, it was restored to vintage CNR colours by the Waterloo-St Jacobs Railway.

OSR 6508 Woodstock (below): 

Just West of CP siding Coakley, the mainline crosses Ontario's Thames River. The view is from Highway 59.  I was quite fortunate to have the sun pop out momentarily for this shot on an otherwise overcast day.

OSR 378 Beachville (below): 

Originally, #6508 was at the East end of the power consist, with #378 facing West."

Posting by Russ Milland; Images by Dave Howard

Click on each image for a closer look! 

OSR 378 Beachville

OSR 6508 Woodstock