|
Caption: On the first full day of service to the new Maybank Look (later renamed Gunn's Loop), TTC CLRV 4071 and PCC 4545 are seen operating on the 512 St. Clair route, pausing westbound on St. Clair Avenue West at Maybank Avenue waiting to head straight and turn into the new loop (out of frame to the left) on Monday July 27th 1981. The loop's exit track is visible in the foreground, crossing over the westbound track at a diamond and heading back east towards Weston/Keele Street. The new loop at Maybank Ave. (the south portion here later renamed Gunn's Rd) & St. Clair was cut into service the previous Sunday evening (July 26th), replacing the old Keele Loop as the St. Clair streetcar's new end terminus.
Much of the Toronto meat packing industry was centered in West Toronto, giving rise to Toronto's old moniker of "Hogtown". On the left can be seen part of Swift Canadian's packing facilities at the corner of Weston & Keele. On the right are the old Ontario Stockyards, and CN's stockyard lead that ran along the south side of St. Clair off the Weston Sub (from CN's West Toronto Yard). Livestock cars were often spotted here for unloading until the late 80's when shipping livestock by rail in Canada came to an end. The Ontario Stockyards closed in the mid-90's, and the site was redeveloped with the commercial and big box developments present today.
Charlie Bridges photo, Dan Dell'Unto collection slide.
|
I’m wondering, Dan, if you are going to replace Mike Filey when the time comes…..
)
Very nice Dan. From my hood! Where did the CN spur originate from the Weston sub? Unfortunately as detailed as the Google Earth Southern Ontario Railway map is, the spur is not drawn in. Thanks!!
Hi Dan, I do have a 1910 map of the area and it shows the spur coming up from CP North Toronto sub along Cawthra Ave (where remnants of a switch still exist in the pavement at Cawthra and Junction Rd!) then turning left along St Clair to match the photo. Is it not CP or was it reconfigured to at least have access from CN since 1910? Thanks again. Brad.
Arnold: I don’t think my feet are big enough to fill those shoes.
Brad: The stockyard lead spur originated next to CN’s West Toronto station, branching off just south of St. Clair and heading west (CN’s West Toronto Yard proper was north of St. Clair). You can see it in the 1968 aerial map below (near the top). The spur that headed south came off the same lead, and was used by CN to access the Maple Leaf Milling silos off Junction Road. There were 3 sidings down there, with CP accessing them from the south via a switching lead from their North Toronto Sub, just west of the diamond:
http://jpeg2000.eloquent-systems.com/toronto.html?image=ser12/s0012_fl1968_it0065.jp2
Dan, Thanks for this! Brilliant.