Caption: In the latter part of the 1950s, in the Upper Ottawa Valley community of Pembroke, Ontario, Stephan Delmonte (Del) Rosamond made a point of being trackside to photograph steam locomotive operations on Canadian Pacific Railway at a time when the Company was transitioning away from venerable steam power to modern diesel-electric locomotion. The accompanying two photographs were archived during this time period.

On what appears to be a pleasant spring day, circa 1956-57, Del is on location near the downtown CPR station, as the Chalk River to Smiths Falls wayfreight makes a switch move in front of the Consolidated Paper and Lumber Company mill located on the south shore of the nearby Ottawa River. Today's motive power is G1s class 4-6-2 Light Pacific No. 2219. The engine, one of 39 coal fired G1's operated by the CPR, was out-shopped in February 1910 by Canadian Pacific's Angus Shops in Montreal, and has been modernized over the years. According to the late Duncan H. du Fresne - who fired this class of locomotive - the engine received a new boiler and cylinders during a 1924 rebuild, and has been fitted-out with a modern cross compound air compressor. In 1950 it became one of three G1 class 2200s to receive a Standard HT-1 Stoker, with the other 36 remaining hand-fired coal burners. At the time of the stoker installation the engine was paired with a 14 ton/8000 Imperial gallon capacity tender. Duncan would later write in his book titled 'When Steam and Steel get in your Blood' that “the upgrade made them into super G1's... much like the modern G5's".

Engine No. 2219 saw service in Eastern Ontario well into 1960, and was disposed of by Canadian Pacific in July 1961. The locomotive was likely scrapped shortly thereafter.

Original digital scanning provided by DigMyPics in Arizona.

Additional Photoshop restoration by Raymond Farand.

Research and narrative courtesy of Raymond Farand.