Heritage in Hamilton
A pair of Canadian National EMD SD70M-2s ease train no. 384 off of the Dundas Sub on the approach to Bayview Junction at Hamilton, Ontario. The lead locomotive, 8952, is one of five locomotives CN painted to commemorate the 25th anniversary of becoming a publicly-traded company. Prior to 1995, CN was the largest and oldest Crown Corporation in Canada. Since going public it has gone on to acquire four major railroads — Illinois Central, Wisconsin Central, Elgin, Joliet & Eastern, and BC Rail — giving it a rail system that touches three coasts, from the Atlantic to the Pacific and south to the Gulf of Mexico. The 8952 represents, of course, Grand Trunk Western. The passage of this special locomotive drew a small crowd, including two railfans from Hamilton, one visiting from Michigan, and yours truly.
A few hours later — as smoke from the Alberta wildfires turned the skies into a milky haze — I caught up with CPKC train no. 236 as it made its way down the Hamilton Subdivision behind a pair of attractive EMD SD70ACUs. Fortunately, for local railfans, this pair of locomotives has been cycling back and forth for the better part of a month now. The lead locomotive, 7012, sports Canadian Pacific’s handsome ‘script’ livery, which originally graced CP’s locomotive fleet between 1960 and 1968. In the last image, 236 is seen rolling by the iconic (former TH&B) Hunter Street station in downtown Hamilton. With the sky getting hazier I thought this was an apt time to conclude a successful afternoon trackside.