TURNOUT - NUMBER 288 DECEMBER 2000
A Study in (Front End) Contrasts!
In the winter of 1958-59, these two photos were taken at the Canadian National Railways’ former Mimico Yard in the west end of Toronto. On the left is U2b class 4-8-4 Northern Type No. 6137 which was built by Montreal Locomotive Works in September 1927 and was officially retired in April 1960. On the right is CFA-16b class CFA16-4 No. 9324 which was built by the Canadian Locomotive Company in Kingston, Ontario in January 1953 and was officially retired in June 1964. Photos from the Don Grove/T&Y Archives Collection
The Funeral Train of
The Right Honourable Pierre Elliott Trudeau
October 18, 1919 - September 28, 2000
by William J.(Willie) Radford
On Thursday, September 28, 2000, The 15th Prime Minister of the Dominion of Canada, The Right Honourable Pierre Elliott Trudeau passed away at his home in Montreal, Quebec with his sons Justin and Sacha and former wife Margaret by his side. He was born Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau on Saturday, October 18, 1919 to parents Charles-Emile Trudeau and Grace Elliott. Mr Trudeau was the brother of Suzette, and Charles who passed away in 1990.
Following the passing of Mr Trudeau, his coffin covered with the Canadian flag, introduced on February 15, 1965, was on public display in the great hall of the Parliament Building’s Centre Block from September 30 to 0800 on Monday, October 2nd. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police pall bearers were charged with the moving of the late Mr. Trudeau’s coffin throughout the funeral process. At 0800, the coffin was moved from Parliament to the Ottawa Station by a hearse. On arrival at Ottawa Station, in privacy, the coffin was moved from the hearse onto the last car of a special VIA Rail Canada funeral train.
VIA had arranged for a special funeral journey from Ottawa back to Mr. Trudeau’s beloved hometown of Montreal where the funeral service was held the next day. The train, designated as No. 638 had two Diesel locomotives and only four passenger cars. There was no baggage car as there was for The Right Honourable William Lyon Mackenzie King on July 26, 1950 and for The Right Honourable John George Diefenbaker in August 1979. Eastward from Ottawa to Montreal, the train operated as "Psgr Extra 6433 East" on its own track while as "Psgr Extra VIA 6433 East" on Canadian National Railway trackage.
The consist of the VIA specials train had quite an interesting history with its equipment. the two locomotives were Engines 6433 and 6436, both Canadian built by Diesel Division-General Motors of Canada Ltd. in London, Ontario. They were both F40PH-2 models in the same GPA-30c class built in 1989 and were two of 29, in series 6430-6458. The series locomotives all have GM 645E3C engine blocks with 3000 horsepower. The four cars behind the locomotives were all USA built by Philadelphia, Penn. based Budd Co. From the front behind Engines 6433 and 6436 were three "VIA1" Club cars 4007, 4008, 4009 and the fourth and rear was Sleeper Buffet-Lounge Dome Observation car 8718-"Yoho Park". This was the car where Mr. Trudeau’s coffin was placed for the 116 mile(187km)eastward journey.
All four cars had many identities in their histories. Club cars 4007, 4008 and 4009 were recently converted from Coach configurations last Spring. They were previously Coach cars 4123, 4124 and 4125 respectively which were upgraded for VIA service in 1992 and 1993. Prior to the 4100 numbers, they were numbered 185, 186 and 187
respectively while stored awaiting upgrading, especially conversion from steam heating to head end power. They were not in passenger service with their temporary 180 numbers. All three cars were built in 1947 and had served on USA railways, or later preserved, when VIA purchased them in 1992.
Club car 4007 started out as Seaboard Air Line Coach car 6224. In 1967 when amalgamation with the Atlantic Coast Line became the Seaboard Coast Line, they renumbered the car 5209. Amtrak acquired the car in 1971 and retained its SCL number 5209 until they renumbered it 6022 in 1974. The car was retired in 1984 and went to the Mohawk & Hudson Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society. Few years later to VIA’s purchase in 1992, the car served on both the Rail/Sea Cruises and Village Rail Cruises as No. 6022.
VIA Club car 4009 had a similar history to No. 4007. This car also started out as SAL Coach car 6014 to when the SAL merged with the ACL to form the SCL in 1967. SAL Coach car 6014 became SCL Coach car 5201 and the number was retained when Amtrak acquired the car in 1971. Again with Amtrak’s car renumbering program in 1974, car 5201 became 6014 and was retired in 1984. Following retirement from Amtrak, the car went to the Bluewater Michigan Chapter of the NRHS. Prior to VIA’s purchase in 1992, the car served on the Rail/Sea Cruises as No. 6022.
VIA Club car 4008 began its history as Pennsylvannia Railroad Coach car 4059 until it became Penn Central Coach car 4059 in 1968. This was a result of the merging of both the PRR and the New York Central Railroad that year. Amtrak acquired the car in 1971 and renumbered it as 5281 and then again renumbered the car to 6069 in 1974. Amtrak retired the car in 1984 and then went to the North Alabama Railroad Club. Prior to VIA’s purchase in 1992, the car served on the Rail/Seas Cruises as No. 6069.
VIA Sleeper Buffet-Lounge Dome Observation car 8718-"Yoho Park" began as a Canadian Pacific Railway car built in 1954 with the same name along with names of national or provincial parks. Shortly after the CPR became Canadian Pacific Ltd. in October 1968, the railway unit became named CP Rail, and they gave the "Yoho Park" car a number, 15418. VIA purchased the car in October 1978 and kept its identity for less than a year before they renumbered the car to 15518. Adding 100 to its previous number was required to avoid confusion with their Steam Generator cars that had such numbers they inherited from the CNR in March 1978. In 1992, the car was upgraded, refurbished and converted to head end power from steam heating and given new No. 8718. This car was named for the Yoho National Park in which was a favourite of Mr. Trudeau and the park he had been in, for this reason VIA choose this particular car to transport the coffin.
At the time when Mr. Trudeau’s coffin was loaded in VIA car 8718--"Yoho Park" some 400 people applauded. Current prime minister, the Right Honourable Jean Chretien and his wife Aline were also at the station, however did not board the train. The former Mrs. Margaret Trudeau did not attend at the station either, however the three people did attend the funeral service in Montreal next day.
On board the special train "Extra VIA 6433 East(638)" were Mr. Trudeau’s two sons, Justin and Sacha along with other prominent people. Former Governor General Romeo LeBlanc and his son, former Cabinet Minister Marc Lalonde, retired Senator Jacques Hervert and onetime law partner Roy Heenan of the firm Heenan Blaiki were among the passengers. The media were riding in one of the Club cars No. 4007 of ahead the "Yoho Park". Among the media, was the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. which had assigned a helicopter to follow the train on its eastward journey.
The special train’s journey was scheduled to operate over its own railway and the CNR from Ottawa Station in Ottawa to CNR’s Central Station in Montreal. The start of journey was at Ottawa Station on the CNR and VIA’s Alexandria Subdivision at mile 76.5 in its entirety to Coteau Jct. station at mile 0.0 in Les Coteaux, Quebec. Eastward between Hawthorne station at mile 72.7 and De Beaujeu station at mile 7.5, the right of way is owned by VIA, while the other two portions remains owned due by the CNR. At Coteau Jct. station, the trains leaves the Alexandria Subdivision and enters the Kingston Subdivision at mile 38.0 and then travels the eastern most seqment of that line all the way to Dorval station, mile 10.3 At that station in Dorval, Quebec, the Kingston Subdivision becomes the west end of the Montreal Subdivision at mile 11.6 and the train travelled that entire subdivision to the end of its journey at Montreal’s Central Station, mile 0.0.
The funeral train, designated as No. 638 that day, operated as Psgr Extra VIA 6433 East was scheduled to depart Ottawa Station at 0840, however was delayed to about 0850. This was the beginning of what became a celebrated and respected train as there were many people along the way to see the train pass. At about every crossing along the way, automobile drivers stood at roadside and clapped. The CBC followed the train overhead on its journey and at some point had technical difficulties with its camera part way.
The train released its brakes and slowly proceeded from the station and was viewed by spectators standing on the Belfast Rd. overpass bridge, when the train picked up additional speed to 30 mph. About 0900, the train left the City of Ottawa and the CNR owned track at Hawthorne station, mile 72.7. Centralized Traffic Control ends there and the Occupancy Control System began, which replaced the damaged CTC system following "Ice Storm ‘98" in January 1998. This is where the overpasses of Highway 417 are located and the train passed, it entered its own trackage as Psgr Extra 6433 East. At that point it also entered the City of Gloucestor and gained speed up to 80 mph.
At the request of Mr. Trudeau’s two sons, Justin and Sacha, the train slowed down at most towns, villages and settlements along its eastward journey to greet well wishers lined up at trackside. The first slow down in the south-east corner of Gloucester occurred at the Carlsbad Springs settlement where some 300 people watched and waved as the train passed 10 minutes late about 0905 by the station at mile 67.2. Limoges station, mile 56.2, located in Notion township, the train again slowed for about 200 people in that mostly French speaking settlement. Scheduled to pass the station in the Village of Casselman at 0911, the train actually slowly passed about 0920, at mile 47.5, where more than 1000 people came to see and pay their final respects. Shortly after Casselman, the train left Prescott & Russell County and entered Stormont Dundas & Glengarry County eastward all the way to the Quebec provincial border.
VIA Psgr Extra 6433 East made slow downs in three communities of North Glengarry Township. he first was made at Maxville, mile 34.4 scheduled for 0924, where the CBC camera crew aboard the above helicopter had technical difficulties and the aerial view was lost seconds to passing the station. However there were other CBC camera crews at the Maxville station who recorded the train’s slow passing along with well wishers and a bag piper at about 0930. Scheduled for 0937, the next slow down occurred at Alexandria, mile 23.0, where some 2000 people, some wearing roses and flags, lined on both sides of the track, A bagpiper wearing a kilt, James MacKinnon piped the first notes of "The Mist Covered Mountains". Sacha leaned from one of the car’s vestibule windows and took a rose offered by a girl student in a school uniform. Also at the station, were some CN and Ontario Provincial Police looking after the crowds at Alexandria station for the actual trains passing at 0947. It did pass the station located at mile 15.0, about 10 minutes later.
About three miles to the east, the train left the Province of Ontario and entered the Province de (of) Quebec at mile 12.1. In the De Beaujeu settlement in the Paroisee de(Parish of) St. Polycarpe, the funeral train left VIA owned trackage at mile 7.5, De Beaujeu station, and entered the CNR where the train once again becomes Psgr Extra VIA 6433 East for the remainder of the journey. At that point eastward, the train operated entirely on CNR trackage. Also at De Beaujeu station eastward, OCS becomes CTC. 1.4 mile east of the station, the train crossed mile 35.4 of CPR’s St. Laurent & Hudson Railway’s Winchester Subdivision at mile 6.1. Another 6.1 miles east of the StL&H diamond was the east end of the Alexandria Subdivision. mile 0.0, at Coteau Jct. station, where it junctions with mile 38.0 of the two track Kingston Subdivisions.
A CBC camera crew was at Coteau station and recorded as the train slowed down, and made a counter clockwise turn towards the Coteau Jct. station point. The train did enter the North track and made a crossover to the South track just before it passed Coteau station, mile 37.8, about 1010, behind the scheduled time of 1004. At that passenger station in the Municipality of Les Coteaux, there were many people lined up along the platform with CN Police maintaining control. Eastwood leaving Coteaux station, remaining on the South track all the way to Dorval, the train gained speed to its maximum of 90 mph for the equipment used.
After the train passed through Vaudreuil-Dorion, crowds grew along the way towards Montreal. Autoroute 20 came into view once the funeral train passed the town. Many automobile drivers pulled off to the side of the highway to watch the train pass. In Dorval, the CBC helicopter crew regained its aerial view of the train just west of Boul. Pine Boul(Blvd) prior to passing Dorval station at its scheduled time of 1033. The train passed the station about 1040 where 1000 people stood on or around the platform. Among the crowd were school children in uniform waving Quebec and Canadian flags and also some war veterans stared in silence with their hats over their hearts. A priest who was there also, blessed the funeral car, No. 8718-"Yoho Park" with the sign of the cross. Dorval station at mile 110.3 of the Kingston Subdivision in the eastward direction becomes mile 11.6 of the Montreal Subdivision.
On the last CNR subdivision of the funeral train’s eastward journey, the train again gains speed until it slows down to about 30 mph prior to crossing Rue De Courcelle(St.) and the St-Henri station point at mile 3.4 in the Ville of(City of)Montreal. Once the funeral train passes through the neighborhood it will further slow down in speed through the Point St-Charles and Griggintown neighborhoods.
Prior to the train’s arrival at Central Station, it will pass the Wellington station tower at mile 1.1, which closed in May, on the north side of Canal de Lachine(Canal). North from Wellington station, the train proceeded slowly along the Montreal Subdivision’s east end, which parallels the southern-most portion of the Deux-Montagnes Subdivision trackage to Central Station. The train did remain on the Montreal Subdivision trackage to its scheduled arrival time of 1055 at Central Station. mile 0.0. A few minutes late, the train made its arrival at Central Station and made its complete stop for the first time since it left the Ottawa Station some 130 minutes earlier. With the complete stop on arrival, thus marked the end of Psgr Extra VIA 6433 East, designated as special train No.638.
After arrival, at the request of the Trudeau family, Mr. Trudeau’s coffin was unloaded from the last car, 8718-"Yoho Park" in privacy for transfer to a hearse. One hour later, about 1200, the hearse left Central Station on Rue Notre-Dame(St.) and travelled ease fourteen blocks to Montreal’s city hall. On arrival at city hall, Mr. Trudeau’s coffin was unloaded by the RCMP pall bearers and moved honorably into the main hall for public honourage for the next 22 hours. At 1000 on Tuesday, October 3rd, the coffin of Mr Trudeau was moved from City Hall again by RCMP pall bearers to an awaiting hearse on Rue Notre-Dame(St.) for the funeral service. The service was held at the Notre-Dame-Basilica church beginning at 1100 and lasted less than two hours. The funeral service as well as the train’s journey for the Right Honourable Pierre Elliott Trudeau was well covered especially by the CBC, CTV, Global along with others.
A Subway Haunting b y Hollie Lowry
In 1998, a group was formed known as the Toronto Ghost and Haunting Research Society (TGHS). They have investigated and complied dozens of haunting stories from all over southern Ontario including the following haunted subway tale.
Riding the subway one evening, a businessman noticed a passenger, standing, dressed in a turn of the century costume. He assumed the man was an actor in costume and began to look for reflections in the subway car windows.
But as the businessman watched passengers come and go from the train, he realized that the formally clad gentleman had no reflection in any of the windows. The businessman figured the man had left the train, but no, he saw the man still standing and still no reflection.
Dumbfounded. he decided to investigate. As the train sped through the tunnel, he walked toward the man. At the blink of an eye, the man suddenly vanished. He was gone-off the TTC speeding through Toronto’s underground tunnels.
A ghost? You can find this and other haunting stories at the TGHS’s website, www.torontoghosts.org. (Adapted from GTA Today)
Association of Railway Museums - Convention (ARM 2000)
by Ian Wheal
STEAMTOWN EXCURSION: Scranton to Tobyhanna, PA., U.S.A. Wednesday, September 20, 2000 on Former Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad.
Last Wednesday, September 20 to Sunday, September 24, 2000, I attended the ARM 2000 Convention hosted by the Steamtown National Historical Site in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Among the highlights of the Convention titled "SWITCH POINTS, Making Choices for the Future", were three rail excursions, two of them powered by ex Canadian Pacific Railway G3c class 4-6-2 No.2317.
On Wednesday, September 20, we travelled some 40 miles to Tobyhanna, Pa. in the Pocono Mountains, first by New York, Chicago & St.Louis (Nickel Plate Road) 1958 built EMD GP9 Diesel-electric No. 514, then on return by CP 2317, built in June 1923 by Montreal Locomotive Works. Wednesday’s outing had several rail guides, among them H. Roger Grant. This "rolling seminar", The Railroad Environment, took us onto the old Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad mainline and covered railroad landscapes, architecture, operation and social history. We had the opportunity to detrain for four photo runbys in near perfect sunny warm fall weather.
A Lackawana Coal Mine tour took us down(by cable railcar) to 190 Slope for a tour of the mine now operated by Anthracite Heritage Museum. Extensive paper sessions covered most aspects of rail musuem operations.
On Saturday, September 23, paper sessions were held with an address by Don Philips, Writer Washington Post and Trains Magazine correspondence.
We came away from ARM 2000, Steamtown National Site, Scranton, Pa, with a great appreciation for the cause of rail heritage and a real respect for the railway past.