The Fort Erie CNR Roundhouse.

CNR Northern 6121 on the FE turntable in August 1956.

CNR Mikado 3486 is stored inside the FE roundhouse in February 1959.

Back in the 80’s, the area around what we now use as the Museum was a very busy site. The yard and yard office were still very active, the car shops were busy repairing cars from across the system, and the diesel shop was keeping the CN fleet in the area running.? The roundhouse and turntable was also still in use, turning locomotives and doing some repairs. However, as the facility started to work towards closing down in 1987, much of the work started shifting to the much larger shops at MacMillan Yard in Toronto. In 1989, all work in the shops of Fort Erie was finished. The track was removed, the diesel shop eventually sold off and left to the elements. The car shops became a lumber distribution facility. The roundhouse unfortunately did not meet the same fate. In October 1992, the remaining stalls of the roundhouse were set ablaze by local vandals and destroyed. Because of the wood construction of the roundhouse, it burned fast and could not be saved. The roundhouse was demolished shortly after the fire, and was eventually bulldozed into the turntable pit when the turntable bridge was removed for scrapping (which in turn became a sale to the Arcade & Attica RR outside Buffalo).? The turntable itself was built in 1915 by the Canadian Bridge Company and was 85′ in length. The A&A had plans to use the turntable at their operation in Arcade NY, but that never materialized and the the turntable was once again up for scrapping, and once again saved by yet another group.? The turntable was resold in October 2001 to the Railroad Museum of Long Island.? It is currently stored at their Riverhead NY site.

The following 4 images show some fairly major repair work to the ring rail of the turntable in October 1985.? New ties were installed in one half of the pit.? Some of the pit was excavated in 2014 and showed the ties still in place, and still in great condition.

The Roundhouse in 1977

Articles from the Niagara Falls Review

The foundation of the roundhouse is still visible in the weeds, and the inspection pits have been covered over.? The Museum has been able to look into the pits, now filled with dirt, as well as excavate a small part of the turntable pit to inspect it for damage.? It would be great to be able to return the turntable to its rightful place back in Fort Erie, but that’s a whole different project right there.

Photos for this article were from the Niagara Railway Museum Inc. archives. the first 2 black & white images are from Ron Wright Railroad images.