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The Niagara, St. Catharines & Toronto Railway
Location: The subject line was centered within the Niagara Peninsula with lines that radiated out from St.Catharines to Niagara Falls, Port Colborne, Niagara-On-The-Lake and Port Dalhouise.
History: Encompassing over seventy-five miles of track, the Niagara, St. & Toronto Railway Company (NSC&T) ultimately became one of the largest radial systems developed in the country, in addition to being one of the oldest, and perhaps the last to have survived. Formed by American interests in 1898, the origins of the NSC&T stem from a series of three earlier lines developed throughout the Niagara Peninsula and then consolidated to form one large, integrated company in the early 1900's. The earliest of these lines was the St.Catharines & Niagara Central Railway, a steam road that was incorporated in 1881 and opened between Niagara Falls and Thorold in 1887. A year later, the line was extended to St. Catharines. Throughout its short life, the route attracted only limited freight and passenger traffic. To improve its fortunes, the name of the line was changed in 1894 to the Niagara, Hamilton & Pacific Railway with the intention of expanding to the west. No work was ever undertaken, however, and the company filed for bankruptcy in 1899. What remained was purchased by the NSC&T later that year (known as the Main Line by the company).
The second line that predated life of the NSC&T was the Niagara Falls, Wesley Park & Clifton Tramway Railway Company, a venture that was incorporated in 1886 as a horse-car line along the streets of Niagara Falls. Opened the following year, the entire route was electrified in 1900 and subsequently sold to the NSC&T in 1901. Although this line was entirely urban in nature, it did offer a connection to American railway interests over the International Railway Company bridge, a matter that would prove of benefit in the future. The third and final company brought into the fold was the St. Catharines Street Railway, a horsecar line that was incorporated in 1874 with the first route being open for public service in November 1879. In March 1882, the name of the company was changed to the St.Catharines, Merriton & Thorold Street Railway to recognize anticipated expansion plans. This move was followed by full electrification in October 1887, along with the absorption of the Niagara & St. Catharines Street Railway the following year. A new name for the company, being the Port Dalhouise, St. Catharines & Thorold Electric Street Railway, took affect in 1893. The NSC&T acquired controlling interest in May 1901.
Notwithstanding the need to consolidate three separate companies over a short period of time, the NSC&T chose to construct its own line in 1901, a four mile connection that extended from St. Catharines to Port Dalhouise (known as the Port Dalhouise Division). To be constructed along the edge of the Welland Canal on a private ROW, the route was opened by the end of the year. This move opened up the opportunity of providing steamer operations to Toronto on Lake Ontario with the creation of the Niagara, St. Cathaines & Toronto Navigation Company. Accordingly, several steamers were purchased and placed in service, allowing for a combined rail-boat offering between Toronto and Buffalo via connections at Niagara Falls. NSC&T boats continued to ply Lake Ontario until 1947. A dramatic change in the ownership structure of the NSC&T took place in 1905 when the American interests were bought out by Canadian businessman, the principle members being William Mackenzie and Donald Mann of Canadian Northern Railway (CNoR) fame. It has been suggested that they made this move in order to solidify opportunities of a complete Ontario CNoR network for the future. With new capital now being made available, work began on upgrading roadbeds and acquiring new equipment, in addition to the implementation of long awaited expansion plans. This included the construction of a line in 1907 south from Thorold to Welland that was extended to Port Colborne in 1911, all on a private ROW (known as the Welland Division), followed by the development of a twelve line northeast from St. Catharines to Niagara-On-The-Lake (known as the Lakeshore Division).
The broad range of communities served combined with the population density of the area allowed for the implementation of both frequent passenger and freight service, using modern high speed equipment. Accordingly, profits throughout the line's history were reasonable, much of this being attributed to the high number of industries served. With the failing of the CNoR just after the Great War, however, ownership of the line was transferred to the Government of Canada under Canadian National Railways (CNR) management who immediately looked to sell the line to municipalities served, most of which approved by 1922. In 1923, however, President Sir Henry Thorton of the CNR took an interest in the company and interurban lines in general, resulting in the expenditure of funds to further upgrade facilities. Ultimately, this included a new station for St.Catharines, track reconstruction throughout, and additional rolling stock.
The last component of rail to be added to the NSC&T was a steam track under CNR ownership that extended between Merriton and Port Dalhouise that was turned over and immediately electrified as a high speed route (former Welland Railway and named as the Grantham Subdivision). Under CNR ownership, the full name of the entire operation was known as CN Electric Lines, NSC&T Railway District in order to distinguish it from other interurban operations under CNR control. The depression of the 1930's was hard on the NSC&T, forcing the company to abandon certain lines and cut operations on others as both freight and passenger revenues fell. The first to go was the Niagara-On-The-Lake branch that was cut back to Port Weller in January 1931. This was followed by the old local line from Thorold through Merriton to St. Catharines in May 1931. By the end of the decade, though, the railway was forced to also deal with increasing automotive and truck competition. Accordingly, passenger traffic on the St. Catharines to Niagara line ceased while all service was suspended in 1947 from Thorold to St. Catharines. In 1950, service was suspended on the St. Catharines to Port Dalhouise route, leaving only the Thorold to Port Colborne line open. Passenger service operated here until March 1959 with freight service being cut in July 1960, one of the last interurban lines to function in Canada. Many of the routes were replaced by local and regional bus service.
Approximate Milage: The approximate total milage of the NSC&T railway was 75 miles.
Current Status: Much of the line has now been abandoned, although a fair amount did survive for a period of time to service area industries. The Main Line between Niagara Falls and Thorold was abandoned in 1947 while the remainder into St. Catharines may remain as a spur line. The Welland Division between Port Colborne and Welland disappeared in 1962 while the remaining track north to Thorold may still be in service as a spur. The Grantham Division remains as a spur while the Lakeshore Division was abandoned in 1931. Most of the Port Dalhouise Division was removed in 1965 with a portion in St. Catharines remaining as a spur.
Principle Stations: Port Dalhouise, St. Catharines, Niagara-On-The-Lake, Merritton, Thorold, Niagara Falls, Fonthill, Welland and Port Colborne.
Remaining Stations: There are believed to be no NSC&T stations remaining.
Additional information about the Niagara, St. & Toronto Railway can be obtained from the following sites:
Electric Lines in Southern Ontario
Last Updated: March 10, 2002
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