Canada Southern Railway


The Canada Southern Railway, also known as CSR, was a railway in southwestern Ontario, Canada, founded on February 28, 1868 as the Erie and Niagara Extension Railway. Its name was changed to Canada Southern Railway on December 24, 1869. The 1868 Act specified that it was to be constructed at a broad gauge of, but that requirement was repealed in the 1869 Act, thus allowing construction at the standard gauge of.
The railway was leased to the Michigan Central Railroad for 99 years; in 1929 it was subleased to the New York Central Railroad. Its successors Penn Central and Conrail later exercised control before being sold to CN/CP in 1985.

History

Background

The line was originally conceived by Kenyon Cox, Daniel Drew, Sidney Dillon and John F. Tracy to connect with the Wabash Railroad and establish a railway network extending from Lake Erie to the Mississippi River.
The Panic of 1873 was responsible for the failure of several large railroads in North America, together with their financial backers. In addition to the CSR, the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad, Northern Pacific Railroad, Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad and New York and Oswego Midland Railroad were also affected.
The CSR's banker, Kenyon, Cox & Co. failed, and its bonds were subsequently protested, although some observers felt that the move was unnecessary. CSR subsequently became insolvent, as it was unable to redeem the bonds. Within two years, it was taken over by the railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt at essentially no cost other than taking on the guarantee of them.
When Cornelius died in 1877, his son, William Henry Vanderbilt, became head of the Vanderbilt railroad empire. The younger Vanderbilt took steps to separate the various railroad properties he controlled. On 1 January 1883, the New York Central Railroad was able to lease the CSR to another Vanderbilt railroad company, the Michigan Central Railroad, on a 21-year renewable term. Vanderbilt, who owned all three companies, ensured that each one operated independently, through its own autonomous president and board of directors. In 1929, MCR subleased CSR to NYC, its parent company.

Development of the line

The company was originally authorized to construct a railway line between Fort Erie and Sandwich, with a branch line to Amherstburg. A second branch line was authorized in 1869 between St. Thomas and Sombra the following year. Other significant subsequent legislation included:
ActSignificant provisions

  • further branch lines authorized to Petrolia and Oil Springs, and connecting lines to either the Niagara River or the Erie and Niagara Railway
  • authorization to construct and operate telegraph lines
  • CSR declared to be a work for the general advantage of Canada
  • migration to federal incorporation
  • authorizing union or amalgamation with the Erie and Niagara Railway
  • authorizing a scheme of arrangement, under which:
  • * new bonds would be issued by the Company, in order to redeem other bonds previously issued by the Company, together with the purchase of mortgage bonds issued by related companies
  • * interest on the new bonds would be guaranteed for a twenty-year term by the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad Company
  • authorization of usage rights on a line leased by the Grand Trunk Railway from the London and Port Stanley Railway, in order for the CSR to be able to offer connecting service between St. Thomas and London
  • coordinating legislation to enable the CSR to use terminal facilities constructed by the London and South Eastern Railway, and to connect with the LSER's line
    • There was an attempt in 1883 to amalgamate the CSR with the Credit Valley Railway, which was dropped when the CVR opted to merge with the Ontario and Quebec Railway instead.

    Corporate Headquarters

    CSR's headquarters were located in St. Thomas, Ontario. The site was chosen because St Thomas was roughly equal-distance between Windsor and Fort Erie, Ontario and the city offered a $25,000 bonus to the railroad company as an incentive to build within city limits. CSR's main building, the Canada Southern Railway Station, included a passenger station and dining room on the ground floor with the railway's head offices on the upper floor. The extremely long, narrow building was based on Italianate architecture and is the only known train station in Canada to embody this style. The station was the design of Canadian architect Edgar Berryman.

    Car shops and Locomotive manufacturing

    A large car shop, located in the yard, facilitated the manufacture of cars and allowed repairs to be made to locomotives. Steam locomotives were also manufactured for CSR in the car shop, beginning in 1882 and closed sometime after 1905. Types of locomotives made included:
    Initially all locomotives were built for use by CASO, but some ended their career with the New York Central Railroad.

    Later Years

    The CSR was never completely controlled by the New York Central or the Michigan Central, as the two together held only about 107,000 of the 150,000 shares outstanding, and the rest were publicly held. The shareholders had received dividends in every year from 1887, and an extraordinary dividend in 1976 triggered a legal dispute that was not resolved until 1983.
    On April 30, 1985, the Canadian National Railway and Canadian Pacific Railway jointly purchased the former CASO from Conrail in order to acquire the Michigan Central Railway Tunnel under the Detroit River and the Michigan Central Railway Bridge at Niagara Falls.
    Much of the CASO has been downgraded, abandoned or removed by CN and CP over the years. Operations through Niagara Falls were discontinued with that portion of the line through the city removed in 2001. Unlike the rest of the line however, the Detroit River tunnel is a key part of freight movements across the Canada-US border and still sees a good number of mainline trains.
    The CASO rarely operated its own rolling stock after acquisition, and its reporting mark was abolished in 1977.