Caption: Now who could that be? It’s amazing what can be stumbled upon when researching historical photos. With only a date and location for this image, it seemed as though the identity of the photographer at left would be lost to time, though it turns out his images are well preserved too. Researching the Toronto Suburban Railway led to the Toronto Public Library Archives section “Railroad yards--Ontario—Toronto” where I came across this image… Pretty similar, taken a bit further left. It seems this was James Victor Salmon, born in 1911, who was a well-established Toronto photographer, historian, and a designer for the Toronto Hydro Electric System for thirty years. His collection of Toronto photography contains over 15,000 images and culminated in his writing of Rails to the Junction: The Story of the Toronto Suburban Railway, which, after his death in 1958 at the age of 47, would be posthumously published by his wife, Jean, in 1970. Much of his work can be found on this Urban Toronto page and through the Toronto Public Libraries archives.

Here, Bruce captures James alongside CNR 6244, a U-2-h 4-8-4 Confederation type, the tenth built in an order of 30 (6235 – 6264) by Montreal Locomotive Works in September, 1943. It would be scrapped in April, 1960. Note the difference in appearance of this U-2-h locomotive to other classes of CNR Northerns in the lack or relocation of the Elesco feedwater heater from just ahead of the smokestack. The double headed eastbound freight is seen approaching the Strachan Avenue underpass on the Oakville Sub. In the background at right is the John Inglis plant.

From it’s beginning in 1859, John Inglis and Company has gone through many changes. Founded by Thomas Mair, John Inglis, and Francis Evatt on July 27, 1859, the company began as small machine shop under the name Mair, Inglis, and Evatt in Guelph producing milling machinery before moving to the Strachan Avenue location in Toronto in 1881 becoming John Inglis and Sons. The company went through multiple name changes to the John Inglis Company Limited in 1913, John Inglis and Company in 1937, Inglis Limited in 1973 and finally Whirlpool Canada in 2001. The famous blue and white billboard overlooking the Gardiner Expressway would go up in 1975 with many messages displayed to motorists over the years. After discontinuing milling equipment in 1903 the company shifted to the industrial market making stationary and marine steam engines, pump house engines, shells for use by allied troops during WWI, turbines, and weaponry and munitions used in WWII, before moving to consumer products. These included fishing tackle, house trailers, heaters and stoves, wringer washers, and later fully automatic ones, electric and gas driers and dishwashers. Inglis would launch it’s Whirlpool brand of washers after selling it’s 1 millionth automatic washer in 1972. As the company slowly moved operations to Mississauga beginning in 1981, the Toronto location was sold off piece by piece. By the early to mid 2000’s, gentrification and condo development had begun. The final piece of Inglis, the billboard, would be dimmed and demolished during the last week of July, 2014.

More CNR 6244:
Bill Thomson: Freshly stored at Mimico, 1959
Don Ross: Cold and dead at Mimico, Dec. 1959

The old Inglis Sign: March, 2004.

A series of Salmon’s images taken at Strachan avenue in 1955 from the Toronto Railway Historical Association: Railfanning Liberty Village in 1955.