Caption: Amtrak F40PH 399 heads up six Amfleet cars on the Toronto-bound "Maple Leaf" from the states, seen here in the evening light making its station stop at the former CN Hamilton (James Street) Station before continuing on to Toronto. By then the station and area in general was looking more than a bit run-down (I can't imagine it impressed the passengers from Buffalo much), with some station tracks in use by the CN car department for freight equipment repair (note the "blue flag protection" applied in front of the ore car on the right).

This would be one of the final times the Maple Leaf stopped at the 1931-built James Street station: next week VIA (including Amtrak) would pull out of the station effective May 25th 1992 in favour of the new Aldershot station. GO Transit (who still ran Hamilton GO trains here) would move to the former TH&B Hamilton station in early 1993, leaving the station vacant. The Labourer’s International Union of North America (LIUNA) would eventually buy and renovate the station, and its now available for use as a banquet hall for special events. GO trains would return to this very area years later, but at the separate and newly-built West Harbour GO station.

Bill McArthur photo, Dan Dell'Unto collection.