- Location: Guelph, Guelph Township, Wellington County
- Name: Community named in 1827 by the Canada Company for the German ancestral home of King George III
- Former Community Names: None
- Railway Companies: GWR (GTR/CNR), GTR (CNR), CPR, TSR/CNR
Part A: Grand Trunk Railway/Canadian National Railway
- Original Railway: Toronto & Guelph Railway 1851 (Grand Trunk Railway 1853, Canadian National Railway 1923) 1856 – Present
- Current/Final Railway: Canadian National Railway
- Railway Mileage: Brampton Subdivision 48.8
- Surrounding Building Context: The community was originally founded as the administrative and commercial centre for the Canada Company, a land development firm responsible for settlement in the area and out to the west. With the coming of the railway, industrial development expanded significantly while connections were made with surrounding communities in the nearby Waterloo area that also fostered growth. The location of the station was in the centre of the downtown area, in close proximity to government buildings (City Hall, market, police station, courthouse and armouries), the market and commercial businesses. A number of factories depended on the railway that produced a full range of products (see map for details). Many remnants of that industrial heritage continue to remain in the community, much of it converted into residential living. Railway facilities constructed by the GTR/CNR included a large freight shed and an express building. To the east of the station area, the railway passes over the Speed River and neighbouring roads on a high steel girder bridge.
Station Origin: Original station
- Location/Address: The station was located at the convergence of several streets being Macdonell St, Quebec St and Woolwich St. in close proximity to Market Square
- Construction Date: The building was constructed with the opening of the line in 1855 by the Grand Trunk Railway
- Architect/Builder: The original design of the building has been attributed to British GTR Chief Architect Francis Thompson, who may have patterned the design from a station constructed in the 1840’s in Kenilworth, England and possibly from other designs along the North Midland and Chester & Holyhead Railways. The building was constructed by the contracting firm Gzowski & Co.
- Station Style: GTR Type Two (Second Class Way Side Station)
- Exterior Architecture Details: The building was an Italianate style single storey low stone structure with a slate gable roof broken by four end projecting chimneys. The roof provided an overhang, supported by triangular brackets, over the platform area. Front and rear elevations were originally defined by six equally spaced arched bays with round headed shuttered doors topped by a transom. End elevations containing two arched bays with shuttered doors topped by gable bulls-eye ventilators
- Interior Architectural Details: Originally, the building contained a general and women’s waiting room on one side of a central hallway with ticket and telegraph offices and freight and baggage room on the other. Modifications took place over time, in particular when detached freight sheds were constructed
- Landscaping & Ground Details: Wooden platform
- Building Costs: Unknown
- Destruction Date: With the increase in population and industrial development in the community, use of the building became strained. For some time, the building had been criticized for being inadequate and was originally to be replaced in the late 1880’s. A new and larger station was eventually proposed to the west to resolve the situation. The original station was likely demolished with the construction of the new one in 1911
- Current Use: Not applicable
- Designations: Not applicable
Station Origin: Second station
- Location/Address: The station was located to the west of the original at the southeast corner of Wyndham Street (subway) and Carden Street
- Construction Date: Given the inadequacy of the original building, plans had been drafted by the GTR in the 1880’s for replacement. Delay was experienced in negotiating the location and design of the building with the City, which felt the station was too modest for the scale of the community. Accordingly construction did not begin until 1910 with the building open for operation in 1911.
- Architect/Builder: The station was designed and constructed internally by the GTR’s Bridges and Buildings Department
- Station Style: Unique to the location
- Exterior Architecture Details: The station is a single storey brick structure on a stone foundation with a hip roof. A long covered platform at one time connected with a separate express building (demolished 1971). Facing the street is an extended porte-cochère over the main entrance that is anchored by a tall decorative tower. Facing the track is a hexagonal operator window
- Interior Architectural Details: The station contained separate ladies’ parlour and men’s smoking rooms as well as a general passenger waiting room, a ticket and telegraph office, a baggage room and parcel office. The interior spaces have been altered over time, with details having been removed or covered over
- Landscaping & Ground Details: The new station was constructed on Jubilee Park, an area the city had created to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in 1897. In front of the station, areas that sloped towards the street and abutted a circular drive were set aside as landscaped grassed area. To the west, a remnant of the original Jubilee Park survives with several trees and a war memorial. Construction of the station allowed for several grade crossings to be replaced by subways to reduce congestion in the downtown area
- Building Costs: Unknown
- Destruction Date: Not applicable
- Current Use: The building remains in use as a VIA and GO transit station stop. Adjacent to the station to the east is a bus terminal
- Designations: The station has been designated under Federal Railway Station Legislation (RSR-145)
Part B: Great Western Railway (Grand Trunk Railway/Canadian National Railway)
- Original Railway: Galt & Guelph Railway (Great Western Railway Company 1855, Grand Trunk Railway 1882, Canadian National Railway 1923) 1857-Current
- Current/Final Railway: Canadian National Railway
- Location/Address: The station was located on the east side of Cardigan St, south of London Rd and north of Norwich St.
- Railway Mileage: Fergus Subdivision 30.58 (Guelph City Spur)
- Surrounding Building Context: See above for general railway information. The GWR route into the city later became known as the Guelph City Spur. Several industries located in and along the Spur, along with the station terminal. A connection was made with the CPR line, which for a portion of the Spur route the two lines ran parallel. It is unknown when the station was no longer active as a railway structure
Station Origin: Original station
- Construction Date: The building may have been constructed as early as 1857 with the opening of the GWR line. Based on design, it was likely constructed c1880
- Architect/Builder: Unknown
- Station Style: To be determined
- Exterior Architecture Details: The building was a single storey yellow brick structure with a gable roof
- Interior Architectural Details: The station contained a passenger waiting room, ticket/freight office, and a freight/express room
- Landscaping & Ground Details: Cinder platform
- Building Costs: Unknown
- Destruction Date: The building may have been taken out of service with the takeover of the line in 1885 by the GTR (station duplication), and appears to have been converted into an office for the adjoining Goldie Mill. Over time, portions of the building were demolished in sections, with the last section disappearing in the mid to late 1970’s
- Current Use: Not applicable
- Designations: Not applicable
Part C: Guelph Junction Railway/Canadian Pacific Railway
- Original Railway: Guelph Junction Railway 1884 (Canadian Pacific Railway 1891) 1888 – Current
- Current/Final Railway: Canadian Pacific Railway
- Railway Mileage: Goderich Subdivision 31.6
- Surrounding Building Context: See above for general Guelph information. The original intent of the line, first constructed south to Burlington on Lake Ontario, was to provide a level of competition for the Grand Trunk Railway. The route was later extended west to Goderich, with the division point between the GJR and the Guelph & Goderich Railway being the Goldie Mill. Both stations utilized by the CPR were in close proximity to the downtown business district and neighbouring residential areas. The line also provided direct connections to many industries in the community (see map for details). Railway facilities constructed by the CPR in Guelph included a large freight office/station and a small roundhouse, along with associated yards and track
Station Origin: Original station
- Location/Address: The station was located just east of Woolwich St and north of Macdonell St, near what is now known as John Galt Park
- Construction Date: Known as the Priory, the building was constructed in 1827 as the home of Guelph founder John Galt and the first structure in the community. The building also served as the original headquarters for the Canada Company, a land development firm that controlled much of the land in the area and to the west. With the construction of the railway in 1888, the building was viewed as being well situated for conversion into a station facility, given its location in the downtown area and near to the river. The building was reconstructed by the railway in order to be suitable for passengers, which also included a long platform
- Architect/Builder: John Galt
- Station Style: Not applicable, former house
- Exterior Architecture Details: The building was a single storey log/frame structure with a gable roof
- Interior Architectural Details: The station contained a passenger waiting room, ticket office and a , freight/express area
- Landscaping & Ground Details: Frame platform
- Building Costs: Unknown
- Destruction Date: With the extension of the line west to Goderich in 1904, the building was viewed as substandard and in need of replacement to handle the increased traffic. A new station was opened in 1911 to the northwest in Trafalgar Square. The Priory was then shifted to make room for additional tracks and left neglected until 1926 when it was dismantled and relocated to a city works yard. Nothing remains of the building today
- Current Use: Not applicable
- Designations: Not applicable
Station Origin: Second station
- Location/Address: The station was located at the corner of Eramosa Rd with Carden St at Woolwich St, at the foot of what was once known as Trafalgar Square (now Kimberly Park). The station was directly alongside the banks of the Speed River
- Construction Date: The station was constructed in 1911 by the Canadian Pacific Railway
- Architect/Builder: Unknown
- Station Style: To be determined
- Exterior Architecture Details: The building was a single storey brick structure on a stone foundation with a hip roof. A rectangular operator window topped by a prominent gable dormer faced the track, which was also mimicked on the opposite side of the building. A porte-cochère extended over the main entrance facing Eramosa St
- Interior Architectural Details: The building contained passenger waiting rooms, an operator and ticket office, and a freight/express room
- Landscaping & Ground Details: A cinder platform surrounded the station, while the adjacent Speed River provided some scenic qualities
- Building Costs: Unknown
- Destruction Date: The station was removed at some point in the 1970’s. An apartment building now occupies the site facing Cardigan Street (Trafalgar Square Apartments)
- Current Use: Not applicable
- Designations: Not applicable
Part D: Toronto Suburban Railway/CNR
- Original Railway: Toronto Suburban Railway 1900 (Canadian Northern Railway 1911, Canadian National Electric Railways 1923) 1917 to 1931
- Current/Final Railway: Canadian National Eclectic Railways
- Location/Address: The passenger terminal for the line was the second CNR station at the southeast corner of Wyndham Street and Carden Street
- Surrounding Building Context: The arrival of the Toronto Suburban Railway offered for Guelph residents an alternative to reach Toronto and connecting communities in-between, at a service level that was more frequent then the steam CNR and CPR railways. Service to the line was provided at both a central and convenient location, being the GTR/CNR station (see below). Unfortunately, the line was not able to generate the traffic and revenue needed to survive and folded with the onslaught of the depression in the early 1930’s.
Station Origin: Original station, Stop 100/101
- Railway Mileage: Mile 48.3
- Construction Date: No station structure was built by the railway, facilities used were the new 1911 GTR/CNR station (see above second CNR station for details). Tracks of the Guelph Radial Railway streetcar system were used from Gordon St to Carden St to access the building, for which a layover track was added on the street. An electrical substation and freight building was built by the line at what is now 22 James St (formerly Bay St), which was converted to a residence after service ceased
- Architect/Builder: Not applicable
- Station Style: Not applicable
- Exterior Architecture Details: Not applicable
- Interior Architectural Details: Not applicable
- Landscaping & Ground Details: Not applicable
- Building Costs: Not applicable
- Destruction Date: Not applicable
- Current Use: Not applicable
- Designations: Not applicable
Ontario Railway Stations 