Old Time Trains

Drifting down the Milton Hill, east of Campbellville, 2-8-2 "Mikado" P2g, No. 5405, a Galt Turn ex Lambton operating as Extra 5405 East, is seen heading a 58 car drag, comprising mostly of OCS "On Company Service" stone, bound for Toronto, on May 15, 1955.

This particular spot was one of my favourite photographic locations. However, its quiet pastoral setting was soon to be marred by the continuous roar of traffic on Highway 401, built a few hundred feet away. The wooden bridge in the background carried a private farm lane over the tracks.

No. 5405, the first of the "modernized" P2 heavy "Mikados", was the initial engine of a group of 12 built by MLW in 1940 and the first P2 constructed since November 1928, when No. 5404 emerged from the same builder. The design of these engines upped the boiler pressure to 275 Ibs./square inch from the previous 200 and 250 Ibs. of the older P2's. They were the last P2's to be built with a steam dome, later groups having an internal steam collecting pipe. A solid sheet steel pilot, similar to those applied to the "Royal Hudsons", was used on the P2g's but later subclasses returned to the standard spoked tube type. Some of the P2g's were fitted with Security Circulators in the firebox, instead of the standard arch tubes. These circulators were wishbone-shaped tubes, running from the crown sheet to each side of the firebox, and the brick arch was installed between them.

When first built, these engines were assigned to the Algoma District in Northern Ontario, and saw much wartime service in that area. In the 1950's, with dieselization in the north, many of these engines, including No. 5405, were transferred to the southern part of the province.

In the 1950's, this engine spent most of her time assigned to the London Division where she ran mostly on the Galt Subdivision between London and Toronto. Her last visit to Angus Shops for heavy repairs was in the late summer of 1956, and she returned to London in October of that year. By early 1959, she could be seen at the head end of mixed train M743 from Guelph Junction to Guelph. Sometimes she would leave the Junction with a combine coach only, a strange assignment for so large a locomotive. However, she had her work cut out for her later in the day when she returned to the Junction as freight No. 86 bound for Hamilton and back where there were some heavy northbound grades. Oddly enough, sister engine, No. 5406, also saw service on these trains about the same time.

No. 5405 was active until about 1960, when there was some talk of preserving her but nothing materialized. Finally, she was sent to Montreal where she was stored serviceable at St. Luc as late as January 1962. By 1963, she was at Angus awaiting the inevitable which came in 1965. She was among the last of Canadian Pacific's steam locomotives to get the torch. W.H.N.R.

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Drifting down the Milton Hill, east of Campbellville, 2-8-2 "Mikado" P2g, No. 5405, a Galt Turn ex Lambton operating as Extra 5405 East, is seen heading a 58 car drag, comprising mostly of OCS "On Company Service" stone, bound for Toronto, on May 15, 1955.

This particular spot was one of my favourite photographic locations. However, its quiet pastoral setting was soon to be marred by the continuous roar of traffic on Highway 401, built a few hundred feet away. The wooden bridge in the background carried a private farm lane over the tracks.

No. 5405, the first of the "modernized" P2 heavy "Mikados", was the initial engine of a group of 12 built by MLW in 1940 and the first P2 constructed since November 1928, when No. 5404 emerged from the same builder. The design of these engines upped the boiler pressure to 275 Ibs./square inch from the previous 200 and 250 Ibs. of the older P2's. They were the last P2's to be built with a steam dome, later groups having an internal steam collecting pipe. A solid sheet steel pilot, similar to those applied to the "Royal Hudsons", was used on the P2g's but later subclasses returned to the standard spoked tube type. Some of the P2g's were fitted with Security Circulators in the firebox, instead of the standard arch tubes. These circulators were wishbone-shaped tubes, running from the crown sheet to each side of the firebox, and the brick arch was installed between them.

When first built, these engines were assigned to the Algoma District in Northern Ontario, and saw much wartime service in that area. In the 1950's, with dieselization in the north, many of these engines, including No. 5405, were transferred to the southern part of the province.

In the 1950's, this engine spent most of her time assigned to the London Division where she ran mostly on the Galt Subdivision between London and Toronto. Her last visit to Angus Shops for heavy repairs was in the late summer of 1956, and she returned to London in October of that year. By early 1959, she could be seen at the head end of mixed train M743 from Guelph Junction to Guelph. Sometimes she would leave the Junction with a combine coach only, a strange assignment for so large a locomotive. However, she had her work cut out for her later in the day when she returned to the Junction as freight No. 86 bound for Hamilton and back where there were some heavy northbound grades. Oddly enough, sister engine, No. 5406, also saw service on these trains about the same time.

No. 5405 was active until about 1960, when there was some talk of preserving her but nothing materialized. Finally, she was sent to Montreal where she was stored serviceable at St. Luc as late as January 1962. By 1963, she was at Angus awaiting the inevitable which came in 1965. She was among the last of Canadian Pacific's steam locomotives to get the torch. W.H.N.R.