Figure 1. Toronto Street Railway horse car on Yonge Street at the Canadian Pacific Railway crossing, after 1885. From City of Toronto Archives, Fords 16, Series 71, Item 3367, 590x 374
Williams Omnibus Bus Lines was the first mass transportation system in the old City of Toronto, Canada with four six-passenger buses (Figure 1). Established in 1849 by local cabinetmaker Burt Williams, it consisted of horse-drawn stagecoaches operating from the St. Lawrence Market to the Red Lion Hotel in Yorkville. The bus line was a great success, and four larger vehicles were added in 1850. After a few years, even more buses were in use, and were operating every few minutes. In 1861, the city gave a 30-year franchise for to Toronto Street Railways who built a horse car line, and the gauge of the buses was modified so as to fit between the tracks. The bus system lasted only until 1862, when it was bought out by the TSR. The omnibuses were manufactured by Williams’ own cabinet-making store on Yonge Street, H. Burt Williams (Toronto, 2017).
Figure 2. This bird’s-eye view illustrates streetcar service provided by the Toronto Railway Company shortly after it took over operations in 1891. In spite of continued city growth, the company refused to extend its single-fares, build new lines or buy additional cars to service the area beyond the city limits of 1891. This inflexibility eventually led to the establishment of the publicly-owned Toronto Transportation Commission in 1921. Toronto Railway Company’s Map Showing Street Railway Lines, 1892. Lithograph. Image courtesy Toronto Public Library: TRL, 970-16 (Old Toronto Map).
A 30-year franchise was granted in 1891 to modernize transit operations after a previous 30 year franchise that saw horse car service from the Toronto Street Railways (TSR). At the end of the TSR franchise, the city ran the railway for eight months, but ended up granting another 30-year franchise to a private operator, the TRC. The first electric car ran on August 15, 1892, and the last horse car ran on August 31, 1894, to meet franchise requirements. There came to be problems with interpretation of the franchise terms, for the city. By 1912, the city limits had extended significantly, with the annexation of communities to the North, East and the West. After many attempts to force the TRC to serve these areas, the city created its own street railway operation — the Toronto Civic Railways — to do so, and built several routes. Repeated court battles did force the TRC to build new cars, but they were of old design. When the TRC franchise ended in 1921, the Toronto Transportation Commission [TTC] was created, combining with the city-operated Toronto Civic Railways lines (Old Toronto Maps, 2017).
Figure 3. Plan of Main Floor of Union Station, Toronto by by architects Strickland & Symons. Monumental in design, the Great Hall features a coffered vault ceiling of Gustavino tiles. The shape of the ceiling is echoed in the four-storey, barrel-vaulted windows on the east and west walls. Mid-way up the north and south walls are carved the names of the cities that were then serviced by the CPR and the Canadian National Railways (CNR), the government-owned railway that replaced the Grand Trunk. The list alternates from side to side, naming the cities from east to west. The interior walls are of Zumbro stone from Missouri; the floors are Tennessee marble, laid in a herringbone pattern. The exterior walls of the station are Indiana and Queenston limestone. Each of the 22 Bedford limestone columns weighs 75 tons is 40 feet high. From The Canadian Architect and Builder, Volume 7 (1894), Issue 9, Plate 1. 790 x 958 (Union Station).
Since the opening in 1927, Union Station (Figure 3) has been one of the most significant hubs in Canada’s transportation network. In the last 35 years, the station has taken on added importance in the Toronto area as the terminal for commuter rail services and as a vital link in the Toronto subway system. Many events that have helped to shape the nation have taken place at Union Station. It was the scene of tearful goodbyes and joyful reunions during the Second World War and was also a gateway for many immigrants arriving in Canada. Today, the station is recognizable nation-wide. Time has only increased the numbers that walk through those Bedford limestone columns. The building of Union Station was ordered by the Board of Railway Commissioners in 1905. The ground under Union Station was owned by the City of Toronto, which leased it to the Grand Trunk Railway in 1905, then later to the Toronto Terminals Railway Company (jointly owned by Canadian National and Canadian Pacific) to build Union Station.
Figure 4. This circa 1890 view shows the second Union Station before the extensive renovations a few years later. The low building right of center was an express facility added sometime in the 1880’s. In 1892, the railways agreed to expand the station through an extensive rebuilding program. A new three-track train shed was built on the south side of the 1873 station. The most distinctive feature of the redevelopment was a new 7-story office building on Front Street. This was designed in the Romanesque style by the Toronto architectural firm of Strickland & Symons. An arcade over Station Street connected the new and old sections of the station. The renovated station officially opened to the public on January 1, 1896, although it had remained in constant use throughout the rebuilding. The renovated station was a sprawling complex that never worked very well, either from an architectural or engineering point of view, 680 x 454 (Second Union Station,2017).
Figure 5. This circa 1926 view shows the south train shed added during the 1895 Union station renovations. This was the first part of the station to be demolished early in the summer of 1927 to make way for trackwork to service the new Union Station. Construction on the new station began in 1915 but was delayed by a wartime shortage of construction workers, financing and building materials as well as the impending insolvency of the Canadian Northern and Grand Trunk Railways. The new Union Station building was completed in 1920, but didn’t open to the public for another several years while the railways and the city continued to argue over the approach tracks. Finally, on August 10, 1927, all trains were shifted to Toronto’s new Union Station and the dismantling of the old station began, a process that took almost a year. The 1895 office building on Front Street survived until 1931 when it too was demolished, 680 x 454, (Second Union Station,2017).
Bibliography
Historical Maps of Toronto: 1892 Toronto Railway Company’s Map Showing Street Railway Lines. 2017. Historical Maps of Toronto: 1892 Toronto Railway Company’s Map Showing Street Railway Lines. [ONLINE] Available at: http://oldtorontomaps.blogspot.ie/2013/01/1892-toronto-street-railway-lines.html. [Accessed 29 October 2017].
Toronto Railway Historical Association. 2017. Toronto Railway Historical Association. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.trha.ca/2ndunionstation.html. [Accessed 29 October 2017].
Origins, Uniqueness, Characteristics, These are all portrayed through the geographies of a city. 