The Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo Railway (back)

NOTE: plaque has text front and reverse.
Hamilton's second major rail carrier, the Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo Railway, was conceived in response to the merger of the Great Western and Grand Trunk Railways, thus providing Hamilton with an alternative shipping system. Linking the Canadian Pacific line and the Michigan Central Railroad's 

Canadian trackage in the Niagara Peninsula, the TH&B began limited operation from its west Hamilton yard in May 1895. The first train arrived at the Hunter Street station from Welland on

December 30th of that year. Although not completed, by running out of downtown Hamilton before year's end, the railway was able to collect municipal financial incentives. Toronto to Buffalo service was finally achieved in May 1897. Initially a passenger carrier, it was not until 1899 with the

completion of the Belt Line into industrial east-end Hamilton that the railway met its goal of

financial stability through freight traffic.

 

The original station, a stone and brick structure complete with an ornate four-storey tower, was situated on the northeast corner of James and Hunter Streets. A tunnel under Hunter Street West cut through a prehistoric sandbar and hid the line's route through a prime residential neighbourhood. In contrast, the line was not concealed through the working-class Corktown district to the east where the railway's freight depot and sheds were also located.

 

The first locomotive shop and roundhouse were situated immediately west of Garth (Dundurn) Street; these were later replaced by larger facilities in the Aberdeen Yard.

 During the Depression, two major projects were undertaken, funded by the City, the Federal Government and the Railway. The first, a grade separation, addressed a long-standing complaint that

the rail line disrupted traffic on the north-south city streets. The construction of underpasses remedied

this problem; however, as a cost-saving measure, it was decided to close off some streets to through

traffic. The elevation of the tracks necessitated the second project, the construction of a new terminal. To accommodate this, Hunter Street was jogged to the north between John and James Streets. Opened on June 26, 1933, the seven-storey Art Moderne structure was located to the immediate southeast of the original station.

 

 Although its activities were limited to Southern Ontario, from its inception to the 1970s, the TH&B was predominantly owned by the Michigan and New York Central Railroads. From the beginning a minority shareholder, Canadian Pacific finally acquired controlling interest in 1977. Thirteen years later, the TH&B faded into history when its operations were integrated with those of Canadian Pacific. In 1996 the former TH&B station, completely refurbished, began service as the Hamilton GO Centre.

 

Sponsored by the Head-of-the-Lake Historical Society

Submitted by Tim Boyd