Canadian National Railways

U Class Northern 4-8-4

Class U-2 Cyl. 25 1/2" x 30" Drv.73" Press 250 t.e. 57%

First CNR Northern type on public display at freight shed at Front St. W. and Simcoe St.

U-2-a 6100 at the Fair of the Iron Horse in Baltimore September 24 to October 15, 1927. CLC 1800 6/1927
Possibly taken before the opening. Looks like they are setting up a fence.

This engine was named Confederation to honour Canada's founding as a nation in 1867. It was equipped with a Franklin booster engine solely for the Fair to display the latest feature. It was removed afterwards. 6100-6104 were built without boosters. 6105-6114 already built by CLC did have boosters.

6104 at Truro, Nova Scotia. Ray Deschenes/Bud Laws Collection

6111 with smoke deflectors. James Adams/Bud Laws Collection

6111 Bathurst Street Yard Note telltales to warn yardmen on top of box cars of bridge. CLC 1811 8/1927 Jim Parker

6111 eastbound on the CNR High Line used by freight trains to bypass the Toronto Terminal Railway.
Track in the foreground is CPR coach yard loop. John Street roundhouse is just out of view to the right.

6115 Bathurst Street Yard. Jim Parker

6115 doubleheading through Truro, Nova Scotia. c.1945 Doug Cummings/Bud Laws Collection

6116 CLC 1816 9/1927 Montreal 6/07/1958

6119 last U2a Saint-Pierre neighborhood of Montreal. 8/01/1955 S.K.Bolton

6120 first U2b MLW 67351 8/1927 6120 London July 10, 1957 Bud Laws Collection

Close up of Vanderbilt tender. Jim Parker

6124 with smoke deflectors. Truro, NS October 1946 Francis Gschwind/Bud Laws Collection

6124 being lifted and moved by the main travelling crane inside Stratford backshops. Canadian National

Here she is! Fresh out of Stratford back shop. Bill Thomson

6126 Truro December 1945 Doug Cummings/Bud Laws Collection

6133 looking pretty filthy! Bud Laws Collection

Extra 6134 West coming off the High Line at Bathurst Street, Toronto.
October 15, 1955 Clayton Morgan/Doug Hately Collection

6136 sitting on a very short deadend track. Bud Laws Collection

6136 James Adams/Bud Laws Collection

6139 last U-2-b looking brand new with two officials posing by it. MLW 67370 10/1927 Joseph Testagrose collection

6139 note the stock car next to engine which was the normal place for it to give good ride avoiding injury to livestock.
Also to allow easy setoff or quick handling by yard engine. Paris Junction, Ontario. Bud Laws Collection

First U-2-c 6140 MLW 67769 3/1929 taking water at unknown location and date.
Possibly Mimico seen from opposite side of 6141 below. Bud Laws Collection

6141 taking water at Mimico (Toronto) October 6, 1940 Bud Laws Collection

6143 posed "rods down" on the shop track. James Adams/Bud Laws Collection

6148 with small smoke deflector behind stack. Canadian National Railways/Bud Laws Collection

E-7-a Mogul 788 beside 6148 in Oshawa June 11, 1938 Bud Laws Collection

Morning sun on a chilly Monday shines on 6150 at Turcot Yard in Montreal Terminal. November 11, 1957 Bob Krone
Class U-2-c Cyl. 25 1/2" x 30" Drv.73" Press 250 t.e. 57% MLW 67779 4/1929

6153 when it was just another Northern! Montreal August 23, 1939 Al Paterson/Bud Laws Collection

6153 racing through Grimsby, Ontario with a short passenger train in 1948.

Turcot roundhouse. MLW 67782 4/1929

6153 preserved 9/1960 following its later years powering excursion trains. Exporail June 10, 2011 Marc Caya

2nd last U2c 6158 North Bay 1954 MertLeet/Joseph Testagrose Collection

U-2-d 6160 with smoke deflectors. MLW 68710 4/1936 First of only five U-2 class ordered during all of the Depression.
Canadian National Railways/Bud Laws Collection

6160 Toronto February 1944 Bud Laws Collection

6161 Truro, NS. June 8, 1950 Bud Laws Collection

6162 spotless. Bud Laws Collection

U-2-e 6167 when it was just another Northern. Mimico roundhouse June 27, 1959. Bob Krone
Following its excursion service, preserved 6/1967 Guelph, Ontario
MLW 69262 3/1940

6171 Turcot, Montreal 9/05/1954 Anthony H. Perles

6172 Montreal 6/07/1958

6173 on shop track with blower on building up steam pressure. Truro, NS. May 5, 1940 Bud Laws Collection

6175 Truro, NS Note Scotia Hotel in right background. Station is hidden behind tender. Bud Laws Collection

6177 no longer with smoke deflectors. Doug Cummings

6177 taking water. Truro, Nova Scotia. July 15, 1948 Bud Laws Collection

6177 with passenger train at Truro in 1943 MLW 69272 5/1940 J.E.Platt/ Bud Laws Collection

2nd last U2e 6178 out of service serviceable at Mimico. 6/27/1959 Bob Krone

6180 Truro 9/1957 Doug Cummings

First U-2-f 6180 part of a ten engine order. CLC 1960 7/1940
Pointe St.Charles 7/03/1954 John Dziobko

6182 on the shop tracks. Turcot October 14, 1940 Al Paterson/Bud Laws Collection

6182 CLC 1962 8/1940. Suburban engine 47 4-6-4T Montreal Bud Laws Collection

6182 getting greased. Truro July 13, 1948 Bud Laws Collection

6184 someone has a really big bag of something on the pilot! Ray Deschenes/Bud Laws Collection

Picture postcard scene of 6185 thought to be on the Grimsby Sub. Jim Parker

Both sides of CNR 6186 a typical 4-8-4 Northern. Mimico (Toronto) Bud Laws Collection
Class U-2-f Cyl. 25 1/2" x 30" Drv.73" Press 250 t.e. 57% CLC #1966 9/1940

Both of these photos came without a caption or date. A common fault with many old photos.

Ken Cutmore identified the location as being Mimico shop track circa 1950's.

Note: There were no numbers 6190-6199 used.

U-2-g, h 6200-6264 MLW

U-2-g 6200 posing brand new. MLW 69698 6/1942 . CN photos. Bud Laws Collection

Note: 6200 later, 1/1964 preserved on front lawn at NMS&T in Ottawa.

Nicely restored! CS&TM. Ottawa, September 2, 2019

6201 with 3rd section of Scotian with holiday traffic. Unknown location. Monday, 12/23/1957 S.K.Bolton, Jr.

Extra 6201 East

6204 brand new. Two official photographs. MLW 69702 6/1942. CNR/Bud Laws Collection

6205 with smoke deflectors. Doing some switching. 9/1948 Niagara Falls Bud Laws Collection

6205 with No.17 Inter-City Limited (Montreal-Chicago) westbound around the curve at Bayview Junction near Hamilton. August 25, 1956 Andy Mc.Culluch Collection/Walter Pfefferle Collection

6207 6/13/1954 Winnipeg L.A.Stuckey/Bud Laws Collection

6210 at Spadina. MLW 69708 7/1942

U-2-g 6210 with passenger train beside 3423 doubleheaded engines and van running extra.
Oakville 7/1958 Dick George/Bud Laws Collection

6212 being serviced in Truro 1943. MLW 69710 8/1942 Bud Laws Collection

Extra 6212 with freight at Cantic, Quebec 9/1955 Phil Hastings/Joseph Testagrose Collection

6213 when it was just another Northern. 4/1944 Toronto Francis Gschwind/Bud Laws Collection

6213 Famous excursion engine well-cared for over the years. 7/1974 CNE grounds in Toronto. Joseph Testagrose

Almost! 6214 was just one engine away from being famous.

Obviously two officials are looking over 6215 for some reason. Seldom seen out of the office!

6215 being serviced at Truro. 6/30/1948 F.J.Bechtel/Bud Laws Collection

CNR 6218 when it was just another Northern. Danforth (Toronto) 6-24-56 Bud Laws Collection
Class U-2-g Cyl. 25 1/2" x 30" Drv. 73" Press. 250 t.e. 57% tender 18 tons 11,600 gals. MLW #69716 9/1942

6218 in its famous role hauling excurions over much of the Great Lakes and St.Lawrence Regions as well as into the USA
in New England and on GTW. Shown here in Durand, Michigan. September 1966. Bud Laws Collection

6219 with engineer Harvey Burnett, Sr. at Kingston making his last trip in June of 1956.
Jim Burnett Collection

6219 (looks like engineer) during servicing stop at Truro. 10/1948 Bud Laws Collection

6220 sitting at Stratford.

6220 sitting at Truro. 9/19/1949 F.J.Bechtel/Bud Laws Collection

6221 on the table at Belleville, Ont. 5/16/1959 Joseph Testagrose Collection

6222 MLW #69720 10/1942 Toronto July 10,1955 Howard W. Ameling/Bud Laws Collection

6225 dead with main rods off but a full tender of coal! Montreal 6/06/1958

6227 Turcot 6/07/1958

6227 Truro, Nova Scotia, August 2, 1950 F.J.Bechtel/Bud Laws Collection

6230 westbound at Bayview Junction.
Red blotches are caused by deterioration of old colour slide something seen on many of these photos.

6232 being serviced on shop track at Turcot, Montreal. September 10, 1949 Bud Laws Collection

6233 tank is overflowing! Spadina February 13, 1958

6233 James Adams/Gary Everhart collection

U-2-h 6235-6264

6237 taking water and getting a hot water and steam pressure cleaning. Bud Laws Collection

6238 taking water in Kingston 7/15/1964 Max Miller/Bud Laws Collection

Extra 6243 taking water at Chatham, Ont. February 16, 1947 John R. Lee/Bud Laws Collection

This old photographic print of 6243 and 6245 below different angles show details of smoke deflectors.

Engine 6245 running as Number 6 a Pool train leaving Toronto for Montreal.
Canadian National Railways/Bud Laws Collection

6250 Brockville MLW 70318 10/1943

6251 Maritime Express No. 3 nearing Sainte-Rosalie Jct, Que. with 15 cars. 1956. S.K.Bolton, Jr.

6252 at east end of Union Station. CP Express building at right. Royal York in background.
Note the red Royal Mail wagons. White sacks contain dirty linen from dining car or sleepers.
Toronto 11/10/1956 Joseph Testagrose Collection

6254 part of the last order of 30 engines. MLW #70322 12/1943 Brantford C.C.Grayson/Bud Laws Collection
Note the large sand box and side-mounted exhaust steam injector in place of usual FWH only on this sub-class.

6257 stopped for a moment with the injector being worked as noted by water discharging to the ground.
Ottawa August 1947 A.A.Schwalm/Bud Laws Collection

6259 Hamilton September 1956 Jim Parker
Orange colour along top of roundhouse and elsewhere is discoloration caused by slide deterioration.

6259 stopped at Glencoe, Ontario 9/1955 Phil Hastings/Joseph Testagrose Collection

6260 getting serviced during stop at Truro.

6261 looking freshly outshopped. .circa 6/01/1955 James Adams/Gary Everhart collection

6262 looking brand new. Bud Laws Collection

Passenger Extra 6264 West taking water and boarding lots of passengers at Kingston. Bud Laws Collection

The station in the background of the photo of CN 6264 looks suspiciously like Kingston, in which the train would be westbound (on that curve where 5702, also westbound, overturned at the station because of excessive speed on August 10, 1947). Lots of people in winter coats boarding the coach immediately behind the baggage car. White flags say it's an extra.

IIRC, CN's practice when running passenger trains in sections on the Toronto-Montreal double track ABS was to have the first section NOT display green signals, and to run any following sections as passenger extras. I'm guessing the train would be
a section of No 5, which depending on the date of the photo would have been scheduled to stop at Kingston around
1:00-1:30 pm. The weak sunlight would seem to confirm a midday timing. James A. Brown

U-3 6300-6336 Cyl. 26 1/2" x 30" Drv. 73" Press. 250 lbs. t.e. 60%

U-3-a (6300-6311) 6300 with two crewmen looking back for something! Schenectaday 67339 7/1927
Fort Erie May 4, 1957 Paul W. Prescott/Bud Laws Collection

6302 looks like just finished taking water. Unknown location and date.
Doug Cummings/Bud Laws Collection

Older American-built U-3-a GTW 6304 looks considerably different yet, has similar specifications.
Schenectady #67343 7/1927 London October 12, 1958 Howard W. Ameling/Bud Laws Collection

6306 in a dramatic scene at Hamilton Junction 3/22/1959 Dick George/Bud Laws Collection

U-3-b (6312-6336 (25) 6317 Schenectaday 69623 1/1942
Sarnia July 20, 1958 Paul W. Prescott/Bud Laws Collection

Streamlined U-4-a 6400's
There were only five of these engines on the CNR plus another six on GTW.
Cyl. 24 x 30" Drv. 77" Press. 275 lbs. t.e. 52% MLW 1936

This photograph in Life magazine compares these five 6400's with the famous Dionne quintuplets.

6400 builder's photograph with typically hand opaqued background. MLW 68715 June/1936
Canadian National 38754

No railfans here, just the general public looking at the latest modern streamlined steam locomotive.
Bonaventure station, Montreal. Canadian National

The corner building in the background is the Victoria Hotel with a United Cigar Store a famous chain.

Note: 6400 was displayed at Simcoe Street freight shed in downtown Toronto
July 13, 1936 for three days when 42,000 people visited the display.

Days later it would haul a passenger special. See next.

Canadian Railway Centenary

6400 backing into Bonaventure station to get special train for Canadian Railway Centenary. July 1936.

The most famous one was the 6400 itself which was used on the 1939 Royal tour.

6400 back in regular passenger service at Oshawa October 8, 1939 Bud Laws Collection

6400 Turcot 9/5/1954 Anthony Perles/Bud Laws Collection

6400 looking a little rough. MLW 68715 6/1936 July 1956 Merritt Mullen

6400 beautifully restored, it was part of Railway Week in Belleville, Ont. June 23-28,1964.

Preserved at the National Museum of Science and Technology in Ottawa.

6401 westbound through Bathurst Street with a short train after just leaving Union station in Toronto
Saturday, May 5/1956 Clayton Morgan/Doug Hately

6401 in a publicity photograph. Canadian National Railways/Bud Laws Collection

6401 in Toronto Bud Laws Collection

6401 getting ready on the Spadina shop track. 11/11/1942 Joe Boreskie/Joseph Testagrose Collection

6402 on the Spadina shop track. 6/27/1959 Bob Krone

6403 on trial run when new. Montreal 1936 Elwin K. Heath/Bud Laws Collection

Toronto 1944 Francis Gschwind/Bud Laws Collection

6404 on the table of Spadina roundhouse in downtown Toronto.

CPR MLW S-3 yard diesel switching in backgrouond.

Westbound at Bathurst Street looking south from Front Street West.

Back (Use your browser Back button)

Old Time Trains © 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021