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Caption: Trillium Ry. 1859 stops and waits for the conductor to throw the switch. 1859 just dropped the car in the siding, has run around it, and is lifting it for the trip to the Port Colborne Grain Terminal.
Originally laid through Port Colborne in 1853 by the Buffalo, Brantford & Goderich Railway, the Dunville Sub came under control of the GTR, in turn becoming the CNR in 1923.
TH&B built their own Dunnville Sub from Smithville, ON through Dunnville to Port Maitland on the shores of Lake Erie. The TH&B wished to access the industries of Port Colborne and gained running rights in 1927 over the CN Dunnville Sub from approximately mile 37.42 to about mile 19.65, where TH&B trains would turn south on what is now the Trillium Railway Government spur and head to the Port Colborne Grain Terminal and ADM Milling.
TH&B running a rights were still used in 1987 (60 years since first obtained) when TH&B was amalgamated into CP Rail. In 1988 the running rights were not renewed, and TH&B in Port Colborne was finished.
Today, there is a laneway running parallel to Clarence Street and Charlotte Street, it sits between the two streets. It is to access the rear parking lot of the TD Canada Trust bank. Immediately behind the bank the TRRY Government spur crosses this lane. One of the cross bucks is mounted on a wooden post. On the rear of the post, under reflective striping, sits the lettering; TH&B Ry.
I wish I could have found more history of the operations of Port Colborne and Macey Yard, but this is all. If anyone knows anything of these lines, please leave in the comments.
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Ian Wilson’s book “Steam to the Niagara Frontier” has a fair bit of information about train operations in Port Colborne during the mid 1950′s. He also gives information about the N.S.&T. in Port Colborne during that time period.
These are great photos. Keep em coming!
Neat shot Jacob … interesting location, perspective and convenient run around maneuver! Incidentally given all the transition happening here, what does CJ stand for respecting switch 42 at Macey Yard?
I beg to be corrected but even IF the running rights were on the CN Dunnville Sub back then, why would there be a crossbuck marked as TH&B on the Government spur ?
Don’t you mean the TH&B had rights on the CN Welland Sub from NYC WX tower to Port Colborne ( via Dain City, CN Welland jct etc?).
Glenn: I’m not sure what the CJ on the switch stand means.
Bruce: That seems more reasonable. I was reading info from the TH&B Historical Society which mentioned the TH&B Dunnville sub, and immediately after says trackage rights on CN into Port Colborne. After looking at some old time tables it seems TH&B running on the Welland Sub and Humberstone Sub is what would have happened.
As for that TH&B crossbuck, I’m not sure what its history is. Was the government spur CN or TH&B?
The CJ lettering on the switch is a holdover from CN Car Control days. Every switch and yard had an Alpha-Numerical designation. Their numbers are dwindling but you can still find them on older switch stands like this. I just forget now ( and you may find a booklet at a flea market) but they were assigned by Region I believe.
To my knowledge no, the Spur has always been CN. MAYBE it was NS&T 80 years ago, but it should not have been TH&B. Perhaps the original post was broken in a collision and they grabbed this as a replacement. TH&B’s running rights were only on the east side of the (old) canal) to serve Inco, and Algoma Furnace.
Hey Jacob, I have the answer to the question (actually mine) respecting the letters CJ on switch 42 at Macey Yard. Knowing that with Hagersville Sub two identifying alphas are used, for example, HE61 – HE66 to describe Garnet Yard with H = Hagersville Sub and E = Garnet (Hagersville is HD). Thus the reason behind my question and thinking that most turnouts would have an individual id. I needed more insight / answers and so phoned a friend, retired railroader, HO modeler, and map enthusiast to sort it out. With our combined efforts (my pinch and his inch) and after locating / reviewing two key trackage maps of Port Colborne, I submit our findings.
Macey Yard on Government Spur (west side of Canal) bears code ‘J’ once having sidings numbered J41 – J48. Conversely on the east side of the Canal along Welland St (south), we note the then Furnice Yard and yes with the designation ‘C’ and sidings C41 – C49. This, in turn, prompted a much closer inspection of the yellow signage plate CJ42. I submit that a J (slightly smaller in width than C 42) was simply and neatly inserted / painted onto the plate accounting for CJ42. So mystery solved … another practical example of item relocation / utilization and functional M of W railroading … with the common thread being Trillium. Jacob, you triggered this exchange and more (to follow) by a single click of the camera!
With respect to the T,H&B horizontal lettering on the cross-buck post by a laneway on Government Spur between Macey Yard and the harbour siding. This section of trackage is surely quaint and dated given the number of streets, lanes and grass it transverses. Jacob, did you or Steven get a photo of TRRY 1859 here on Dec 30th? If not, perhaps Mr. Mooney has one in his bag of tricks in order to convey the scene and put a train in the frame. It surely requires a number of cross-bucks with posts to properly safe guard the area … they are effective and functional but clearly not originals nor clones… thus relocation. As such, I asked my same, learned source if he was aware of T,H&B trackage within these parts of the Niagara Region. No sweat … another map … and from his own hands-on-experience … T,H&B’s Coyle Yard including shared trackage rights … located just west of Swing Bridge #15 (Ontario & Canal Bank Streets) spanning the now Welland Recreational Waterway. This is still part of CP’s Welland Industrial Lead and used weekly by TRRY to service Vesuius. Back to the mystery post … it also has vertical letters Fr under the the narrow reflector strip below the T,H&B lettering. I suspect that Fr may well be a reference to the then closely located Feeder Yard east as opposed to today’s Feeder Yard west. Trillium’s M of W just being both functional and practical while teasing us railfans. Now you have its potential origin and the other half of the story as they say.
@mercer: The TH&B must have had running rights on the west side of the canal to service ADM Milling: http://www.railpictures.ca/upload/the-engineer-of-thb-gp7-73-watches-as-he-shoves-a-cut-of-cars-into-the-adm-mill-on-the-west-side-of-the-canal-in-port-colborne-im-unsure-of-the-date-likely-around-1980
Hi Guys…late to the game here, but TH&B had running rights in Port Colborne on all trackage (east and west sides), including Maple Leaf Mills (now ADM) and The Government Elevator, except the Elm Street Spur to Robin Hood. My only rationale for why TH&B did not have rights to Robin Hood was that line was originally NS&T trackage, and the Robin Hood facility went into production 14 years after the running rights were granted..TH&B literature quoted Port Colborne as a Freight Office (as well as Pittsburgh and Rochester if I remember), and the CNR Station on King Street also had a TH&B Freight Office sign on the south west corner. For a brief period in 1987 rebuilt TH&B GP’s arrived into Port Colborne in CPR Colors and snub noses but by 1988 it was over and all freight reverted back to CN
Thanks – nothing wrong with continued commentary years after the fact!
The latest issue of the “Ontarion” (TH&B Historical society newsletter) goes into some detail of the TH&B’s expansion in Niagara after the CASO takeover, some of which will be covered in the next issue (a 2 part article by John Eull)
Hello Jacob…for what it is worth, Trillium has now fenced and gated the entrance to MACEY Yard, I saw GMTX 340 (Trillium) using the yard to do a run around with 4 grain hoppers on Thanksgiving Monday and was surprised to see it as locked access..Cheers