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About wmthomson

An enthusiast interested in trains since my high school days (1939-45) at Port Credit High School (beside the CN main line), although not always with a camera. Recently moved to Guelph from Kingston Ontario. Still have my Pentax K1000 but mainly shoot digital now. *All photos copyright Bill Thomson. Editors note: Bill passed away in July 2022, his page is being maintained by RP.ca staff in his memory. https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/guelph-on/william-thomson-11195826

wmthomson's Railpictures.ca photo upload statistics

Number of images: 715
Total gold: 10824
Number of comments recieved : 1228
Number of comments posted : 21
Total views: 2316936

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wmthomson's 715 photos on Railpictures.ca:

A set of power including CP SD40-2 5428, SD9043MAC 9108, SD40-2 5928 and two other GE AC4400CW units move around near the station at Sudbury (note city water tower in the background). CP 5428 is a former Missouri Pacific/Union Pacific unit CP had purchased secondhand from GATX (after having leased it through them). The 5400-series were CP's secondhand SD40 number series, which included units originally built for railroads including MP/UP, KCS, QNS&L and NS/SOU.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Canadian Pacific
Date:	09/28/1998
Location:	Sudbury
Province:	Ontario

1 Comments | 8 Favourites

Snow and Steam: the engineer pokes his head out of CPR P1e Mikado 5169 (built by MLW in 1913), at Mavis Road in Cooksville, Ontario during 1958. 5169 was retired and scrapped later in 1958, spending its final years assigned to the Ontario district out of London.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Canadian Pacific
Date:	1958
Location:	Cooksville
Province:	Ontario

Comments | 17 Favourites

Restored CP "First Class" coach 141, dating from the early 1900's, is seen at John Street coachyard in downtown Toronto, brought out of storage for Railway Days in October of 1973. In the background, you can see the Toronto Star's office tower at 1 Yonge Street, and another high-rise tower under construction along the harbourfront.
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During the planning of CBC's "The National Dream" series (with Canadian host Pierre Berton) in the early 1970's, CP was looking for old equipment suitable for use in the series of episodes portraying the creation and building of the railway. This car was originally built by CP's Angus Shops in July 1907 as suburban coach 141, and at the time was one of only three such cars left, assigned to OCS / Maintenance of Way duties on the DAR and numbered 411585. Originally a sister car was the one picked, but after it was damaged in transit, car 411585 and the remaining other car (for parts) were shipped to Weston Shops in Winnipeg for restoration in 1973. 411585 was given back its original number 141, and decorated to represent an earlier era for filming the 1870/80's-ish footage. The car, along with famed CPR 4-4-0 steamer 136 were both featured prominently many scenes of The National Dream. CP later donated 141 in 1980 to the Calgary Heritage Park, where it currently resides on display and restored to its original varnished wood exterior.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Canadian Pacific
Date:	10/27/1973
Location:	Toronto
Province:	Ontario

Comments | 11 Favourites

CN's Test Train (or "TEC" train) is shown on the Kingston Sub at Coteau QC in April 1998. Power leading the two cars today is CN GP9RM 7065.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Canadian National
Date:	04/06/1998
Location:	Coteau
Province:	Quebec

Comments | 7 Favourites

Canadian National S1a-class "Mikado" 3200 sits in the scrap line at Barrie in 1964, awaiting the cutting torch with other retired steam engines. CN 3200 was originally build by CLC in Kingston as Canadian Government Railway 2800 in 1916. It later became Canadian National 3200 in 1919.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Canadian National
Date:	1964
Location:	Barrie
Province:	Ontario

Comments | 14 Favourites

CN GP9RM's 4036 and 4141 are shown between assignments in the yard at Coteau, Quebec (at the junction of CN's Kingston Sub and Valleyfield Sub) in April 1998. CN rebuilt its GP9 fleet in the 80's and 90's to serve as roadswitchers for yard, local, and road service, and many have continued to operate under CN to this day, some at 60 years old and over.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Canadian National
Date:	04/06/1998
Location:	Coteau
Province:	Quebec

1 Comments | 5 Favourites

Another one of Goderich Exeter Railway's hand-me-down 4-axle units, GEXR GP38 3856 works at Stratford in August 2002. It has been restenciled and renumbered for GEXR, but still sports the blue and yellow of former owner New England Central RR, a railroad in the RailAmerica family (who also owned GEXR). It was originally Gulf, Mobile & Ohio 720, and worked for Illinois Central before becoming NECR 9539. GEXR 3856 was eventually transferred up north to the Ottawa Valley Railway, and sent for rebuilding as RLK 2054.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Goderich-Exeter
Date:	08/26/2002
Location:	Stratford
Province:	Ontario

2 Comments | 7 Favourites

Here's another view of Canadian Pacific Royal Hudson 2857 with its short fantrip excursion train, on the giant 2142' long wooden Hog Bay trestle, during a photo runby stop just outside of Port McNicoll on CP's Port McNicoll Subdivision. Note the open doors on the baggage car with wood blocking, allowing riders a chance to lean out and witness the sights, sounds and smells of riding behind a live steam engine up close.
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Planned photo stops and runbys such as this were common during excursions, as they allowed passengers and attendees a chance to hop off to photograph the train they were riding at different points along the line, and then re-board and resume the excursion again. Often times, they were planned for notable points along the line, including landmarks such as bridges, stations, junction points and the end terminus of the line (such as the visit to Port McNicoll during the trip to visit some of CP's <a href=http://www.railpictures.ca/?attachment_id=22492><b>last steam engines in regular freight service</b></a>).
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A wider view of the bridge and train can be found here: <a href=http://www.railpictures.ca/?attachment_id=24230><b>http://www.railpictures.ca/?attachment_id=24230</b></a>

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Canadian Pacific
Date:	03/27/1960
Location:	Port McNicoll
Province:	Ontario

3 Comments | 23 Favourites

CN ES44DC 2233 leads two other units on eastbound train 360 at Mile 187 of CN's Kingston Sub, passing over the County Road 6 crossing in Amherstview, Ontario (just west of Kingston). Note the new replacement plow applied to the front of 2233.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Canadian National
Date:	04/24/2009
Location:	Amherstview (Kings…
Province:	Ontario

Comments | 6 Favourites

Here's a closer view of Ontario Southland's caboose OSRX 4900 pictured on the Guelph Junction Railway along Edinburgh Road in Guelph. As mentioned previously, this is ex-CP 434900, an earlier CP center-cupola riveted steel van (different from the more popular "Angus" welded steel vans).

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Ontario Southland
Date:	02/21/2001
Location:	Guelph
Province:	Ontario

1 Comments | 9 Favourites

Ontario Southland Railway RS18u 180 and RS23 505 (both ex-CP units) are seen working a freight through Guelph on the Guelph Junction Railway in January 2007.
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OSR has purchased some secondhand GMD SW1200RS and GP9u units from CP in more recent years, but their old MLW RS23 and RS18u units have been OSR's regular power on the line since startup, and continue to see use.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Ontario Southland
Date:	January 2007
Location:	Guelph
Province:	Ontario

Comments | 6 Favourites

Ontario Southland van 4900 trails the freight lead by RS23's <a href=http://www.railpictures.ca/?attachment_id=39334><b>503 and 505</b></a>, running along the Speed River in Guelph on the Guelph Junction Railway.
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4900 was an older steel center-cupola caboose (or van, in CP parlance) acquired by OSR from CP in 1998, and was formerly CP 434900 (it had been renumbered into that 4349xx international service number series from a previous 4341xx-series number). In recent years, it has been out of service and stored at Guelph Junction.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Ontario Southland
Date:	02/21/2001
Location:	Guelph
Province:	Ontario

2 Comments | 11 Favourites

Ontario Southland RS23's 503 and 505 (ex-CP 8029 and 8021) are seen handling a freight on the Guelph Junction Railway, heading through Guelph running along the Speed River.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Ontario Southland
Date:	02/21/2001
Location:	Guelph
Province:	Ontario

1 Comments | 11 Favourites

GEXR GP9 901 switches some of the industrial trackage at the north end of the Guelph North Spur, along Edinburgh Road North. 901 started life as a Baltimore & Ohio unit that went through a few shortlines before ending up on GEXR, where it ran until being parked out of service, and was eventually cut up for scrap in 2008.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Goderich-Exeter
Date:	02/21/2001
Location:	Guelph
Province:	Ontario

Comments | 10 Favourites

GEXR GP38 3843 runs solo long-hood forward, seen crossing Aberdeen Street heading towards Paisley Street on the Guelph North Spur during March 2002. 3843 originally operated for the L&N, Seaboard and CSX before being sold to the North Carolina and Virginia Railroad (NCVA), where it acquired its purple and silver paint scheme. The colours earned it the nickname of "Barney", but the unit left the GEXR when it was sent to the New England Central in 2006.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Goderich-Exeter
Date:	03/22/2002
Location:	Guelph
Province:	Ontario

Comments | 8 Favourites

Roberval & Saguenay 2-6-0 #14 (a 2-6-0 "Mogul" Built for the R&S by MLW in 1926, later sold to the Alma & Jonquieres in 1941) is pictured by the railway's roundhouse in Arvida QC, circa 1940.
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Bill Thomson collection photo (photographer unknown).

Name:	Bill Thomson coll. …
Railway:	Roberval Saguenay
Date:	Circa 1940
Location:	Arvida
Province:	Quebec

Comments | 9 Favourites

Roberval & Saguenay 15, a small 0-4-0T Tank engine, is shown parked outside the roundhouse in Arvida QC, Circa 1940.<br><br>R&S 15 was originally built by MLW in 1923 as Quebec Development Co. 104 and changed hands a few times: to Alma & Jonquiere 1, sold to R&S 15 in 1928, to Alcan 15 in 1951, and has been preserved on display at a pulp mill museum in Chicoutimi as R&S 15.<br><br>Bill Thomson collection photo (photographer unknown).

Name:	Bill Thomson coll. …
Railway:	Roberval Saguenay
Date:	Circa 1940
Location:	Arvida
Province:	Quebec

Comments | 10 Favourites

Roberval & Saguenay 2-6-0 #13 (a 2-6-0 "Mogul" Built for the R&S by MLW in 1927, disposition unknown) is pictured coupled to an old wooden CN boxcar, in Arvida QC circa 1940.<br><br>Bill Thomson collection photo (photographer unknown).

Name:	Bill Thomson coll. …
Railway:	Roberval Saguenay
Date:	Circa 1940
Location:	Arvida
Province:	Quebec

Comments | 10 Favourites

Roberval & Saguenay 4-6-0 #9 is pictured outside the roundhouse in Arvida QC, circa 1940.<br><br>According to Colin Churcher's <a href=https://churcher.crcml.org/industrials/industrialsmod><b>Industrial Locomotives in Canada</b></a> page, R&S 9 was built by an unknown manufacturer in 1889 for the Pittsburgh & Lake Erie RR in the US, and acquired by the R&S through a locomotive dealer in 1919. It was sold for scrap in 1941.<br><br>Bill Thomson collection photo (photographer unknown).

Name:	Bill Thomson coll. …
Railway:	Roberval Saguenay
Date:	Circa 1940
Location:	Arvida
Province:	Quebec

1 Comments | 11 Favourites

The old Canadian Northern (CNoR) swing bridge over the Trent River in Trenton is pictured in the foreground, swung in the "open" position. In the background is CP's long trestle for their Belleville Sub. At the time, the line crossing the old CNoR bridge was a CN spur track branching off CN's Trenton Spur (former Maynooth/Marmora Sub) and still in use to access industries on the east side of the river. Today, both the line and bridge spans have since been removed, leaving only the abutments.

Name:	Bill Thomson
Railway:	Canadian National
Date:	1998
Location:	Trenton
Province:	Ontario

Comments | 12 Favourites

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