Welcome to the new NRM blog!? Now that we have a location (not yet open to the public though!), we felt it was a good idea to change the way we keep everyone up to date. There will be lot’s more posts to come…

February and March were?good months for the Niagara Railway Museum.? We acquired some very good artifacts for the collection.? At our Niagara Square display in February, we talked to a few people who said they had things they would donate to us.? Well, we often hear that, but unfortunately, more often than not, nothing happens.? This time it was very different.? At Niagara Square we were given a small CN First aid kit.? This was great as all of our first aid kits were stolen from our boxcars when in storage with the contents?dumped out on the ground.? Also at the Square we got a unique donation out of the blue.? We had always been looking for info on the Centennial Train of 1967, and someone came up to us on the Saturday and gave us the actual brochure from the train.

This was a great addition.? At our March show, James Crooks brought out a satchel full of old rule books & timetables from various lines around Niagara, including the C&O in Canada.? The final donation came in the form of the brass # plate from CNR P-5-f 0-8-0 #8366.? The plate was donated by Evan Court, who was a hostler down at the CN yard in the Falls.? He said that was the last steam switcher in service, and the day it was to be retired, they dropped the fire, and had just enough steam to get it out of the roundhouse, where it was switched into a train, and hauled to London for scrapping.? Evan removed the plate just before it left the City.? The photos here show CNR 8366 working in Niagara Falls in front of the Station on July 3, 1957, and of the actual plate before restoration/cleaning.

The Niagara Railway Museum wishes to thank all these people who have donated artifacts to us not just recently, but in the past as well.? Thank you for helping us save a part of our railway history.? Of course, the NRM is always looking for donations, both of artifacts, and monetary.? If you would like to donate to us, we can issue a charitable tax receipt.

The Niagara Railway Museum has had some items recently donated, which are part of the history of the railways of Niagara.? Ex-CN Carman Larry McLeish donated his car repair manuals and test books to the NRM, which is great, as we didn’t have any of them in the collection before.? He also donated his blue carmans lantern, and 2 lights which came from the CNR Fort Erie Roundhouse, before the fire and subsequent demolition.? The lights will be restored and rewired, and will be hung in the display boxcar, and actually used for lighting.? My thanks go to Larry for this great donation.

Another recent acquisition is not an old one by any means.? When Trillium Railway Co. Ltd. took over the CN lines on the west side of the Welland Canal, from Forks Junction near Welland, to the north end of St. Catharines, they had the official opening in Thorold.? At the opening, a CN GP40-2LW was brought in, and along with one of Trilliums own S13’s had a rope and some signs strung between them.

The signs, which were 4 of the cities which Trillium was now operating through (Port Colborne/Wainfleet, Welland, Thorold & St. Catharines) were pushed together to signify the linking of the Region from Lake to Lake.? The signs have been at Trillium’s Feeder yard, and were close to going in the garbage.? I asked if we could have them, as I believe they are an important part of the current railway status in Niagara, and was told to take them before they get thrown out.? The signs are now in the collection, and will be part of the display once the Museum is up and running.

My thanks to Trillium Rail for allowing us to save these pieces.