The Chicago Express, with 1271 assisting 2857,
in all its glory, stops momentarily for a bag of mail at Hornby on April
22,1955. This was a one day stand for steam as No. 21 had been diesel-hauled
for a year, and it was only the third instance of steam on the train
since diesel-electrics took over on March 8,1954.
There were to be two more steam-hauled trips after this photograph was
taken, the last one taking place on January 2,1957, when Nos. 1221 and
2409 handled the train. This instance was due to the impending strike
of firemen later the same day, and steam was used so that diesel units
would not be stranded at remote points.
In steam days, Train No. 21 required an assist to Orr's Lake if the
consist was over ten cars. The assist power for this train was most
interesting as it had considerable variety, due to the fact that it
was a breaking-in run for freshly outshopped engines. Power such as
F1 's, F2's, G1 's, G3's, H1a's, H1 b's, and Royal Hudsons, could
be seen on the assist which was a photographer's delight. One of the
finest looking combinations that I ever saw on Train No. 21 was two
of the earlier Hudsons, Nos. 2806 and 2816, turned out in pristine
condition. It was 1949 and N.R. Crump, then Vice-President, was making
a trip to Windsor in his private car. Unfortunately, this event went
unrecorded by my camera.
No. 1271, the last of the G5c class Pacifics, was a John Street
engine for most of her career, seeing frequent service in the summer
of 1957 and 1958 on the boat train to Port McNicoll. In 1959, she was
assigned occasionally to the Hamilton and Peterborough runs, but was
scrapped at Angus on December 6, 1960.
No. 2857 H1d class Royal Hudson saw many years of service on
the Toronto to Windsor run, during which time she was involved in several
level crossing accidents. The worst that I recall, took place on September
17,1951, when she was on Train No. 38, the Royal York. Five miles
east of Chatham she crashed into an empty low-bed trailer truck. Unfortunately,
she was derailed and turned over, dragging four cars off the rails and
tearing up 150 feet of track. The steam turret in the cab broke and
immediately scalded the crew. Fireman Carl Stirling was killed almost
instantly and Engineman Fred Chubb died a day or so later. The truck
driver also died. The ironic part of this tragic affair was that Engineer
Chubb was to attend a weiner roast that evening to celebrate his forthcoming
retirement, only a few weeks away.
No. 2857 was repaired at Angus Shops and saw almost nine more years
of service. She retired in a blaze of glory as she hauled her last train,
a fan trip sponsored by the Upper Canada Railway Society, from Toronto
to Port McNicoll and back on June 5,1960. On September 13, 1960, she
arrived at Angus Shops for the last time, and was scrapped on April
10,1961. W.H.N.Rossiter
