History of the Toronto, Hamilton, and Buffalo Railway

 

TH&B 1895-1910

 

The TH&B railway came into existence on March 25, 1884 when a piece of Provincial Legislation was passed, allowing the building of a small railway to service Hamilton and the surrounding area. It took almost 10 years to get its affairs in order, but in 1893, the TH&B railway finally commenced functional train services.

 

The early operating years of the TH&B saw a gigantic gain in the amount of track laid and engines purchased. On May 24, 1895, Hamilton saw the TH&B’s first Hamilton originating train begin its maiden voyage on the newly built city tracks. By the next year, both the Hunter street tunnel, and the Hunter street station would be completed and open for business.

 

For the first three or four years of its life, the TH&B railway was mainly a passenger line. However, the company knew it couldn’t survive on passenger travel alone, and so looked for ways to expand itself into the freight carrying business. In 1899, the TH&B began constructing what was known as the “Belt Line”. The Belt line would be responsible for carrying much of the TH&B’s freight orders. With the introduction of this line, the TH&B ensured yearly financial gains for its company right up until the Great Depression years.

 

TH&B 1910-1928

 

In keeping with its needs for expansion, the TH&B railway invested in a number of new engines. By 1920, the railway had completely replaced all of its original steam engines with newer and more powerful engines capable of keeping up with the company’s high volume passenger and freight demands. The 103, with its 55 inch driving wheels had the power and the traction to haul loads up the steep Niagara Escarpment grades at both ends of the TH&B line. It and its sister “Consolidation” engines: 101, 102 and 104 became the workhorses of the system.

 

As well as its fleet of new steam engines, the TH&B also introduced “Absolute Permissive Block”, a new signalling system which allowed trains to use the same section of track without fear of a collisionwith another train travelling in either the same or the opposite direction. This new signalling system would save many lives and would catch on quickly with the other North American railway companies.

 

Continuing its reputation for innovation and its need for more and more powerful engines, in 1928 the TH&B purchased two “Berkshire” steam engines from the Montreal Locomotive Works. The only two of their kind in Canada, the Berkshire engines had a different wheel configuration which allowed them to pull larger loads than the company’s older “Consolidation” engines.

 

TH&B 1928-1959

 

With the heyday of steam engines plugging along full force, the TH&B Company once again took the lead with the introduction of a direct steaming plant at its new roundhouse. The plant enabled the railway to pressurize their steam engine boilers in about a half an hour instead of having to wait for steam pressure to build up using a traditional fire-making and heating procedure. It was the first of its kind in Canada.

 

The next 20 years would see steam powered engines dominating the lines at the TH&B railway, carrying passengers and freight through the miserable times of the Great Depression and WW2. The 100 series engines on the line were being relegated to yard and short-haul use as the Company’s newer, bigger steam engines, the Berkshires and eventually Hudsons, ran the main line with larger trains and higher speeds. During this time the 103 worked the sidings that fed Hamilton’s burgeoning heavy manufacturing industries.

 

After the wars, rail travel began to decline as automobile ownership started to become common place. In 1948, the steam era began to draw to a close when TH&B started to purchase new 1200hp. and 1500hp. diesel engines from the General Motors locomotive works in London Ontario. Over the next few years, the TH&B would expand its fleet of diesel engines and begin retiring its beloved steam engines. On March 23,1954 the TH&B ran its last steam powered passenger train.

 

By the end of 1959, the TH&B’s railway fleet would be completely converted to diesel power. Many of its steam engines were sold, scrapped, or merely left to rust on side rails somewhere. The only TH&B engine to escape that fate was the 103. The public’s nostalgia for steam power convinced the Parks Department to enter into an agreement in 1956 to have the 103 moved to Gage Park to become a landmark.