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Caption: Last Run!!! After operating since Dec. 30, 1895; the passenger service is no longer. CP, in its effort to rid itself of this burden after taking over the TH&B, paid the city of Hamilton $1.8M to free itself of an 1894 TH&B agreement to provide passenger service to Hamilton "in perpetuity." The final run of the Budd Cars, which carried passengers on the TH&B line since October 1970, replacing regular locomotives, occurred April 25, 1981. A smattering of foaming fellers marked the occasion. Otherwise, it was just another quiet death of another transportation service. CBC-TV did send a reporter; four of us lined up at the old station by the bridge, and were interviewed as to what we thought of the occasion and why we were there.
My parents saw us on TV that evening. Dad said to Mom. "Well, at least we know where that danged kid is."
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a) Who is in the picture on right?
b) When was that ‘new’ station torn town? When was it built and was it a passenger station?
Only people I ‘think’ I know in that shot are on the extreme right, Jan Hart, and in the white coat, Greg Roach. The ‘station’ was a modern passenger building but I do not know when it was built. I’d guess in the 1950s, and it was torn down probably around 2000. It sat empty and boarded for years and the vandals were trying to torch it.
Station reminds me a lot of Owen Sound – too bad I missed it, would have been a nice prop. Sorry but I have a lot of conflict with this station – it’s built on NYC/PC/CR land is it not? Surely it’s there to service what remained of the joint TH&B/CR passenger service – so who built and does it reflect either of the owners of the time? Or is it as I see it – based on CP designs similar to Owen Sound/etc?
Also fascinating – why does it look like two railfans are checking their digital cameras when clearly they were using film?
Arnold did you invent a time machine and not tell us?? 
H.T.Grep: The questions you ask demand research and in this dump of a den I do not know where to look first, but will take a stab at it and report later.
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First time I went to Fort Erie I recall seeing an old sign “NYC….Yard.” on the other side of Central Av bridge. This was NYC et al property and no doubt it was built for them back when they were part of the passenger service. Off-hand I can recall a considerable number of stations of this design; well, flat roof, anyway. May have been NYC “offices” at one time…being at the border and all that. I noticed the guy checking his camera; all I recall was a bunch of them roared up in a couple of cars and ‘hit the ground running’.
Mr. Grep; since Arnold runs “high end” camera equipment he wouldn’t know the answer to your question. The checker is likely making sure that the film counter had advanced before he took another frame.
Brother Moon(ey); Since when is Fort Erie part of the TH&B Passenger System? I thought Welland was as far as one could travel.
CDP.
The ‘changing of the locomotives’ at Welland from TH&B to MCRR ended quite a few years ago. Haven’t an exact date, but CP “Dayliners” (Budds) commenced running straight thru to the States from T.O. in October 1970. Thus the old MCRR station pictured became a “TH&B” station as far as the passengers were concerned.
Mr. Mooney, looking very closely at the last run RDC consist, is the car a CPR RDC-2 ? It looks like the VIA horizontal blue/yellow striping ends at rear end of the 2nd car. When I rode this train Toronto-Ft Erie about 2 weeks earlier, it was still 2 CP RDC’s in CP paint scheme. Thank you for recording a historical moment.
@railway guy: Sorry, I cannot give you an answer because for some reason I did not log the numbers of the Budds that day. There must be slides here with the info on them but to find them is hopeless. The running around for this train was probably why I did not get the notebook out. As soon as I caught this image a guy from CBC asked me and a couple of others to stand at the entrance to the old B-1 station (at International bridge) and make like we were photographing the last run so he could present this on the 6PM News. My parents were surprised to see me on TV that evening. Unfortunately, I never did get to see the broadcast because I did not get home until dark.
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Fun days.
Late with this reply because I just returned from Saskatchewan………..
The mighty Niagara , that I was born in raised in , is a turning into an empty shell . The trains that use to run and people could catch ,so they could go to wild places like NYC and Chicago are no more .I still recall leaving out of Welland’s train station on King St with my Mom and Dad to New York City , to board The S S Mauretannia 2 to go to Gibraltor .Also visiting family on Lewis St in Fort Erie and looking at the busy rail tracks , that ran along Lewis Street .Let’s not forget , the old train station in Buffalo , what a magnificent structure it was .
Many of us feel the loss of Niagara as a commercial and manufacturing hub. It is now wallowing in a severe state of decay. Fort Erie (Fort Drearie) is especially on a downward spiral. Times have changed and we have to accept the facts. For you as a train lover, looking around at what used to be, I share your feelings for sure.
Hey Arnold glad your back. Was going to write you a note.
Either way at least Fort Erie has trains and good ones. Its still a happenin’ place.
I still recall working at Greater Canada Colour , the printing place in Stevensville , the train passed by Greater Canada Colour . I was only 18 and man I was full envy for a lot of people , especially the people on the train . I remember as the train passed , one night ,I saw a guy sitting and talking to , two girls on the train , it must have had a snack car . I certainly did envy him as I was on my way to check the ink shed, next to the tracks at Greater Canada Colour .
Another great shot Arnold, I especially like those shots where the rial is rusty but the train in the photo is going to “fix” that problem. According to Anthony Clegg’s excellent book “Self Propelled cars of the CNR”, VIA 6110 was originally Budd demonstrator 2960. It had an unusual set of trucks instead of the normal RDC trucks. I don’t know if, or when those trucks were replaced with standard RDC trucks. Maybe someone has photos of the oddball trucks in their collection & haven’t noticed them?