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Toronto Railway Museum
@torailwaymuseum.bsky.social
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The Toronto Railway Museum is located in the historic John St. Roundhouse National Historic Site. Open year-round to visitors interested in Toronto's rail heritage.
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Feb 15, 1999: the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada unveils a plaque commemorating Canada’s Black railway porters at Montreal's Windsor Station. Canadian Pacific president Rob Ritchie addressed hundreds of surviving porters and their families at the ceremony. 1/3
A Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada plaque at Windsor Station in Montreal, QC. The plaque text is in both French and English, and reads: "Les porteurs ferroviaires ont joué un rôle majeur dans la défense des droits des Noirs au Canada. Dès la fin des années 1880, ils étaient des chefs de file des communautés noires de Montréal et d'autres villes. Grâce à leurs syndicats, dont l'Ordre des porteurs de wagons lits et la Fraternité des porteurs de wagons lits, ils réussirent à obtenir la reconnaissance des personnes d'ascendance africaine dans les relations de travail. Après la Seconde Guerre mondiale, ils contribuèrent de façon importante au mouvement pour les droits de la personne, notamment par leur lutte pour éliminer la discrimination dans les emplois ferroviaires. Railway porters played a major role in the struggle for Black rights in Canada. Starting in the late 1880s, they emerged as leaders of African Canadian communities in Montréal and in other urban centres. Through their unions, such as the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters and the Order of Sleeping Car Porters, they gained recognition for Blacks within the labour movement. After the Second World War, the porters made important contributions to the campaign for human rights, particularly through their struggle to end discrimination in railway employment." A photo showing the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada plaque commemorating Railway Porters and their Unions, mounted on an interior wall at Windsor Station in Montreal, QC. Parks Canada, 2017.
February 16, 2026 at 2:09 AM
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Feb 14, 1966: the Canadian National Railway restores overnight passenger service between Ottawa and Toronto, which had been discontinued on October 29, 1965. A coach and two sleepers were added onto express freight trains Nos. 105 and 106, running via Smiths Falls and Napanee. 1/2
An ad from the March 9, 1966 Ottawa Journal promoting CN's passenger train service between Ottawa and Toronto. Three daily trains connected these two cities, including a morning and afternoon train and the recently re-introduced overnight train which ran every day except Saturday. Under CN's Red, White & Blue fare plan, the cheapest one-way coach ticket was $5.90 on Red "bargain" days.
February 15, 2026 at 2:24 AM
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Feb 13, 1911: Canadian Pacific vice-president David McNicoll presents the city Board of Control with a list of planned improvements in Toronto, including a new office tower and city ticket office at the corner of King and Yonge—briefly, in 1913, Toronto's tallest building. 1/3
David McNicoll, vice-president of Canadian Pacific Railway, circa. 1910. Unknown photographer. Courtesy of Glenbow Library and Archives Collection, Libraries and Cultural Resources Digital Collections, University of Calgary (CU1174183). A colourized postcard view of the Canadian Pacific Building at the southeast corner of Yonge and King Streets in downtown Toronto, completed in 1913.
February 14, 2026 at 3:57 AM
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Feb 12, 1941: CN train No. 19, a Montreal-Toronto overnight train, plows into the back of a stalled freight train a mile east of Trenton Jct. The freight train had stopped because the locomotive cylinder head blew out and the crew had climbed down to investigate. 1/3
A headline from page 11 of the February 13, 1941 edition of the Globe and Mail, saying "Two Are Killed, Several Hurt In Train Crash—Fast Passenger Plows Into Rear of Stalled Freight Near Trenton—Inquest Is Opened." A Canadian serviceman stands on overturned Canadian National Railways 4-6-4 Hudson-type steam locomotive No. 5701 after it was wrecked at Trenton, Ontario on February 12, 1941 in a rear-end collision with westbound CN freight train No. 495. Photo from the George Horner collection.
February 13, 2026 at 2:47 AM
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Feb 11, 1998: Ontario Northland Railway diesel locomotive No. 1400 arrives at Exporail (the Canadian Railway Museum) in St-Constant, Quebec. The RS-10 diesel road switcher had been built by the Montreal Locomotive Works in 1955 and was a uniquely Canadian model. 1/2
Former Ontario Northland RS-10 diesel locomotive No. 1400 on outdoor display at Exporail in St-Constant, Quebec on January 18, 2003. Photo by Jean-Francois Brulotte, Barraclou.com.
February 12, 2026 at 4:02 AM
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Join us on Family Day weekend for crafts and tours. This year CP Cape Race will be open to visitors inside Stall 17 with a DIY train crest activity. All activities are included with admission and are appropriate for ages 3+.
An image showing a cartoon of two children at a table making crafts with paper, glue and scissors. On either side of them are two railway cars. Above them are a group of different railway crests and logos, including those for the Grand Trunk, Canadian Pacific and Canadian National Railways as well as VIA Rail Canada. At the top of the image is a stylized ticket with the title "D I Y Family Train Crest, fun family craft." The image also includes the Toronto Railway Museum logo, the dates February 13-16 and the words "included with museum admission."
February 12, 2026 at 3:12 AM
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"UNION STATION ON A FOGGY DAY", #Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Oct., 2002.

📷: J.R. Rowan

I divided the frame diagonally almost straight down the middle. Dark vs Light contrast. CN Tower obscured by #fog

#photography #filmphotography #Kodak #Tri-X #architecture #UnionStation #EastCoastKin #ClassicMono
February 10, 2026 at 5:49 PM
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Feb 10, 1860: the Toronto Locomotive Works delivers its twenty-third and final steam locomotive to the Grand Trunk Railway. The TLW had built two 4-4-0 locomotives for the Buffalo, Brantford & Goderich, three for the Cobourg & Peterborough and eight for the Grand Trunk. 1/3
A front page advertisement from the January 16, 1855 edition of the Toronto Globe. It says "Turners! Finishers!! Blacksmith!!! Wanted at the Toronto Locomotive Works, Two Hundred Men. (Turners, Finishers, And Blacksmith) To whom the Highest Wages will be paid. James Good, Locomotive Works, Toronto."
February 11, 2026 at 2:29 AM
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Feb 9, 1916: Sir Charles Rivers-Wilson dies in London, England at the age of 85. After a distinguished career in the British civil service, Rivers-Wilson became president of the Grand Trunk Railway in 1895. He appointed Charles M. Hays general manager in 1896. 1/3
A portrait of Sir Charles Rivers Wilson in 1904. Photo from the National Magazine, November 1904, via Wikimedia Commons. A portrait of Charles Melville Hays circa 1910. Photographer unknown, via Wikimedia Commons.
February 10, 2026 at 3:20 AM
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Tomorrow! Join us for our Third Thursday talk on Black Railway Porters in Canada with special guest Channon Oyeniran.

www.tickettailor.com/events/toron...
A group of six Black railway porters in 1951. Photo courtesy of the CN Collection, Canada Science and Technology Museum.
February 10, 2026 at 2:20 AM
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Feb 8, 1986: 23 people die and 95 are injured in VIA Rail's worst train wreck, a head-on collision near Hinton, AB. VIA No. 4, the eastbound "Super Continental," combined with No. 6, the eastbound "Skeena," collided with a westbound Canadian National Railway freight train at 8:40 AM. 1/3
An aerial view of the aftermath of the Hinton train wreck on February 8, 1986. To the left, a VIA sleeping car is turned on its side beside the track, while at centre a Skyline dome car has been derailed and bent by the force of the collision. At right, the remains of a VIA coach are barely exposed underneath a pile of wrecked freight cars. Photo from the Edmonton Sun archives.
February 9, 2026 at 1:02 AM
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Feb 7, 1916: Lake Erie & Northern Railway begins operating between Galt and Brantford, ON. By the end of July, the electric interurban line would reach Port Dover. The LE&N's partner interurban, the Grand River Railway, ran from Galt to Waterloo with a branch to Hespeler. 1/2
A map of the Grand River Railway and the Lake Erie and Northern Railway, from a Canadian Pacific Railway public timetable. The two electric railways are shown as thick black lines between Waterloo, Kitchener and Hespeler in the north, through Preston, Galt, Paris, Brantford, Waterford, Simcoe and terminating at Port Dover in the south. Other railways are shown as thin black lines on the map.
February 8, 2026 at 2:25 AM
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Feb 6, 1906: track laying crews of the James Bay Railway clash with employees of the Grand Trunk Railway in the Don Valley. The JBR crew, building a new line between Parry Sound and Toronto, encountered a GTR car on a spur, deliberately blocking their path. 1/3
James Bay Railway No. 49, a 4-4-0 steam locomotive purchased secondhand from the Grand Trunk in 1903, handles a construction train including JBR flatcar No. 23061 in the Don Valley in 1906. Photographer unknown.
February 7, 2026 at 4:34 AM
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Feb 5, 1871: the Credit Valley Railway obtains a charter to build a line between Toronto and St. Thomas, ON. Backed by Toronto-based promoter George Laidlaw, the line officially opened as far as Milton in 1879. Passenger service to St. Thomas wouldn't begin until 1881. 1/2
A map of the Credit Valley Railway and its connections shortly before its amalgamation with the Ontario & Quebec Railway in 1883. The main line of the CVR is shown as a thick black line between Toronto and St. Thomas, Ontario, with other heavy black lines radiating out from St. Thomas to show the connecting Canada Southern Railway. A branch of the CVR extends northwest from Streetsville to Orangeville and Elora.
February 6, 2026 at 2:58 AM
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Feb 4, 2001: demolition experts implode London's 10-storey CN Tower, with its ground floor VIA Rail station. The station had only been used since 1969 and was actually the fifth passenger station on this site, with the first having opened in 1856. 1/3
London, Ontario's CN Tower, a ten storey mid-century office building, is captured mid-collapse after demolition charges have exploded inside the building on February 4, 2001. Photo by Robert Riehl.
February 5, 2026 at 2:33 AM
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Feb 3, 1986: Federal Minister of Communications Marcel Masse announces the location for the Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography. $2.5 million would be spent converting the abandoned railway tunnel adjacent to Ottawa's Chateau Laurier Hotel. 1/3
A view looking east from Wellington Street toward the Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography's entrance pavilion on December 9, 2004. In the background is part of the west wall of the Fairmont Chateau Laurier Hotel. Photo by SimonP via Wikimedia Commons.
February 4, 2026 at 4:07 AM
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Join author and historian Channon Oyeniran as she shares the story of the Black men who worked as sleeping car porters on Canadian railway routes. This talk is free and open to the public.

buytickets.at/torontorailw...
An image of Black sleeping car porters with a smaller inset portrait of historian Channon Oyeniran. At the top of the image is a banner saying "Black Railway Porters in Canada" and at the bottom is a caption saying "Second Tuesday Zoom Talk, February 10, 2026 - 7 pm ET."
February 3, 2026 at 2:52 PM
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Feb 2, 1969: the Canadian National Railway discontinues mail and express trains Nos. 229 and 230 between Montreal and Toronto. The declining role of railways in the movement of mail was also hastening the obsolescence of postal facilities around Toronto Union Station. 1/3
Canadian National FPA-4 diesel locomotive No. 6786 leads an eastbound train with only mail and express cars visible in the consist at Bowmanville, Ontario on August 1, 1966. Photo by Doug Hately.
February 3, 2026 at 2:55 AM
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Feb 1, 1968: the Pennsylvania and the New York Central Railroads amalgamate to form the Pennsylvania New York Central Transportation Company. The combined entity was more commonly known as the Penn Central. 1/3
A map of the northeastern United States as well as parts of Ontario and Quebec, showing the combined routes operated by the New York Central Railroad (draw as red lines) and the Pennsylvania Railroad (drawn as black lines). The caption says "merged system will provide transportation services to a large area of U.S." and below that is a headline saying "ICC Aides Back Penn-Central Merger."
February 2, 2026 at 3:12 AM
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A temporary pop up shop has been installed in Stall 17 with a selection of our most popular gifts and souvenirs. The Shop at Don Station is closed during winter, but will be open for Family Day weekend, February 13 to 16, 2026 and March Break, March 14 to 22, 2026.
A view of the museum's pop-up shop inside the Stall 17 exhibit space in the John Street Roundhouse. Four shelves with a selection of some of our most popular gifts and souvenirs.
February 1, 2026 at 11:19 PM
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Jan 31, 1931: the new Canadian Bank of Commerce head office building opens for business at 25 King Street West. The 34-storey, 476-ft. (145 m) structure succeeded Canadian Pacific’s two year-old Royal York Hotel as the tallest building in Toronto. 1/3
The new Canadian Bank of Commerce head office building towers over its neighbours on King Street in downtown Toronto, circa 1931. City of Toronto Archives photo. An interior view of the main banking hall of the new Canadian Bank of Commerce Building circa 1931. The high vaulted ceiling and tall round-arched windows have sometimes resulted in interior photos of this space being confused with the Great Hall of Toronto Union Station. City of Toronto Archives photo.
February 1, 2026 at 3:02 AM
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Jan 30, 2012: GO Transit extends its Barrie Line 3.5 km north from Barrie South to the new Allandale Waterfront station. The line's new northern terminal sits beside the former Grand Trunk Railway 1905 Allandale station and is more convenient to downtown Barrie. 1/3
GO Transit's GO Bear mascot greets a small child on the platform at the Allandale Waterfront station as GO Transit staff passengers who have just disembarked from the first train to the station mill about in the background on January 30, 2012. Photo courtesy of the Barrie Examiner archives. The GO Transit Allandale Waterfront station is in the foreground and the former Grand Trunk/Canadian National Railway Allandale station is in the background in this July 20, 2013 view. Photo by Secondarywaltz via Wikimedia Commons.
January 31, 2026 at 3:38 AM
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A handful of passionate rail enthusiasts braved the snow to attend our annual Supporter Dinner at the Steam Whistle Tap Room last Sunday. Thank you to MPP Chris Glover (@chrisgloverndp.bsky.social) for joining us!
A group of fifteen people smiles for the camera in the Steam Whistle Tap Room at the John Street Roundhouse on the evening of Sunday, January 25, 2026. Outside the roundhouse windows at upper left, an enormous snowstorm is in full swing.
January 31, 2026 at 2:17 AM
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Jan 29, 1976: federal Minister of Transport Otto Lang announces a new federal policy on passenger rail service in Canada. This came as the government attempted to stem the deterioration of CN and CP passenger trains in the years leading up to the announcement. 1/3
Otto Lang, federal Minister of Transportation in 1976. Boris Spremo photo, Toronto Star Archives, Toronto Public Library.
January 30, 2026 at 2:33 AM
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Jan 28, 1968: the Upper Canada Railway Society runs an excursion around Lake Simcoe behind Canadian National Railway steam locomotive No. 6218. The train departed Toronto Union Station with 13 cars carrying over 600 passengers and headed north up the Don Valley on CN's Bala Subdivision. 1/3
The cover of an Upper Canada Railway Society brochure promoting its "Simcoe Circle Tour" from Toronto to Washago and return, on January 28, 1968. The cover shows a photograph of the front of CN steam locomotive 6218 superimposed on a stylized map of Lake Simcoe, with stylized tracks in the shape of a diamond surrounding it, labelled Toronto at the bottom and Washago at the top.
January 29, 2026 at 3:18 AM