Rock on Trains

This month’s Canadian Corner post features the Windsor, Essex and Lake Shore Railway (W.E. & L.S.); details come from the book, Kingsville 1790-2000: A Stroll Through Time.

Charter obtained in 1901.
Construction begun in 1905 – reached Cottam in 1906, Kingsville in 1907 and Leamington in 1908.
The rail line carried people and freight.
About 25% of the company’s revenue came from freight, including farm produce, tobacco, brick and tile.
There was a special siding at the Cottam canning factory to pick up their products
There were two streetcar lines running through the town.
The main route followed Division Road North to the Four Corner and turned east on Main Street East. The coaches would stop at the passenger station before going on to Leamington.
The second line went continued on Division Road past the Four Corner. The streetcar turned at Mill Street, followed Mill to Lansdowne, down Lansdowne Avenue to Park Street. The streetcar continued along Park Street to the streetcar barns and power house. Passengers on this route were taken to the Kingsville harbour, to the Mettawas Inn or they could walk to nearby Lakeside Park.
By 1923, the number of passengers was beginning to decrease due to the number of private autos. The streetcars were also in need of updating. The company continued to use power generated in Kingsville even though it was cheaper if obtained from Ontario Hydro.
By 1927, the company was operating in the red and the Dominion government decided to abandon the company.
In September 1929, municipalities along the route began operating the line. New streetcars were purchased and labelled “The Sunshine County Route.” They were first used in 1930.
Operating losses continued to increase and in September 1932, the service terminated.
The same month that the railway terminated, Greyhound bus began service from Windsor to Leamington. They maintained a ticket office on Main Street East until 1961.
It took until 1959 for the municipalities to pay off the debentures for the railway line.

: Windsor, Essex & Lakeshore Railway Map

: Car #507 – Howard Ave. at Hanna St. – Windsor, Ont. 1939 (Credit: Bernie Drouillard)

: Locomotive #10 at car shed on Chatham St. – Windsor, Ont. 1939 (Credit: Bernie Drouillard)

: Car #502 on Chatham St. – Windsor, Ont. 1939 (Credit: Bernie Drouillard)

: Cars transitioning to a temporary track at Erie and Howard Ave. – Windsor, Ont. 1939 (Credit: Bernie Drouillard)

: Four cars bound for Montreal on the Essex Terminal at Howard Ave. and Hanna St. – Windsor, Ont. 1939 (Credit: Bernie Drouillard)

Images courtesy of www.internationalmetropolis.com. History chronology courtesy of the Kingsville Archives.

Rock on Trains © 2021, Tom Rock + T.D.R. Productions. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from Tom Rock is strictly prohibited.

Featured Louisville & Nashville depots on the blog this month are those in Huntsville, AL, Louisville, KY, Mascoutah, IL, Foley, AL, and Nashville, TN.

HUNTSVILLE, AL – The Huntsville Depot located on the Norfolk Southern Railway line in downtown Huntsville is the oldest surviving railroad depot in Alabama and one of the oldest in the United States. Completed in 1860, the depot served as eastern division headquarters for the Memphis and Charleston Railroad.^[3] It is listed on both the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage and National Register of Historic Places.^[1]^[2]

Huntsville was occupied by Union forces in 1862 during the Civil War as a strategic point on the railroad and the depot was used as a prison for Confederate soldiers. Graffiti left by the soldiers can still be seen on the walls. The Huntsville Depot saw its last regularly scheduled passenger train, Southern Railway’s The Tennessean, on March 30, 1968. Today the Depot serves as a museum, part of the Early Works Museum.

Information courtesy of www.wikipedia.org.

LOUISVILLE, KY – The Union Station of Louisville, Kentucky is a historic railroad station that serves as offices for the Transit Authority of River City, as it has since mid-April 1980 after receiving a year-long restoration costing approximately $2 million. It was one of three union stations in Kentucky, the other two being in Paducah and Owensboro. It superseded previous, smaller, railroad depots located in Louisville, most notably one located at Tenth and Maple in 1868-1869, and another L&N station built in 1858. The station was formally opened on September 7, 1891 by the Louisville and Nashville Railroad. There was a claim made at the time that it was the largest railroad station in the Southern United States, covering forty acres (16 ha).^[2]

Union Station provided the entrance to Louisville for many visitors, with its height being the 1920s, when it served 58 trains a day. As a Union Station, it served not only the L&N railroad, but also the Monon Railroad, the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Louisville, Henderson, & St. Louis, the latter eventually merging with the L&N. Many of those traveling to the Kentucky Derby would use the Union Station as their first place of celebration, with twenty special trains coming to the facility, and Pullman cars allowing overnight accommodations, a trend that continued until the mid-1960s. Three separate United States presidents arrived in Louisville by Union Station.

Information courtesy of www.wikipedia.org.

MASCOUTAH, IL – In 1870, the St. Louis and Southeastern Railway Company built a depot in Mascoutah, Illinois. On September 8, 1870 it inaugurated the town’s first train service. In 1879, the Nashville Chattanooga and St. Louis Railroad bought this railroad, which itself was taken over by the L&N Railroad in 1880. In June 1975, the town of Mascoutah bought the depot from the L&N for $1.00, and in early July moved it to Scheve Park. The depot soon became the centerpiece for homecomings and other activities.

FOLEY, AL – Located in the old L & N Railroad Depot is Foley’s Museum Archives. The first depot was built in 1905 when Mr. John B. Foley of Chicago used some of his own money to bring the railroad to the southern part of Baldwin County. This first depot burned to the ground, and a second station took its place in 1908. The railroad line was a spur from Bay Minette and ended approximately a mile south of Foley. At that end, there was a wye when the train could turn around.

The depot and the railroad became the center of activity for the growing town of Foley. At this time, the area was primarily agricultural so the railroad was vital to getting the produce to market. During “shipping” season, thousands of boxcars would pull out of Foley loaded with potatoes, corn, gladiolas, and many other types of produce that was grown in the area.

In 1971, the L & N Railroad discontinued their services to Foley. It was the intention of the company to tear down the depot. However, John Snook, owner of Gulf Telephone Company, bought the building for one dollar. He then moved the whole building to Magnolia Springs, a small community five miles West of Foley. For 24 years, Mr. Snook used the building as a warehouse for the phone company before deeding it to the City of Foley. In 1995, the depot was returned to Foley and placed back in its original location.

The City has since turned the depot into a museum. Here, you will find pictures and artifacts that depict the culture of South Baldwin County, especially the City of Foley. The Museum is open Monday through Friday from 10am – 4pm.

Information courtesy of Foley Railroad Museum.

NASHVILLE, TN – This National Historic Landmark symbolizes the power of railroad companies, specifically the Louisville and Nashville (L&N) Railroad, over the transportation and economy of turn-of-the-century Tennessee. Built between 1898 and 1900, and designed by L&N company engineer Richard Montfort, the building is a significant Tennessee example of Richardsonian Romanesque style. The magnificent passenger train shed, which measured 250 by 500 feet with a clear span of 200 feet, was an engineering marvel for its time. In 1900 it was the longest single-span, gable roof structure in the country. After a fire damaged the shed, and no viable preservation alternatives were identified, the shed was razed in late 2000.

For seven decades, Union Station served Nashville passengers as a massive stone gateway to the metropolitan corridor represented by the national rail system. In 1975 the station was condemned and closed; Amtrak continued to use the shed for passenger traffic until 1979. Metropolitan Nashville officials acquired the rapidly deteriorating structure in 1985; by the following year, Union Station had been restored as a hotel and restaurant. It has served that function ever since and once again is a prominent Nashville architectural and historical landmark.

Information courtesy of Carroll Van West, The Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture.