Caledonia railway station was built in 1908 by the

Grand Trunk Railway The Grand Trunk Railway (; ) was a Rail transport, railway system that operated in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario and in the List of states and territories of the United States, American sta ...

Company of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. The station was the third to be built in

Caledonia, Ontario Caledonia is a community located on the Grand River in Haldimand County, Ontario, Canada. It had a population of 12,179 as of the 2021 Canadian Census. Caledonia is within Ward 3 of Haldimand County. The Councillor elected for Ward 3 is Dan La ...

History

Historically,

Buffalo Buffalo most commonly refers to: * True buffalo or Bubalina, a subtribe of wild cattle, including most "Old World" buffalo, such as water buffalo * Bison, a genus of wild cattle, including the American buffalo * Buffalo, New York, a city in the n ...

Brantford Brantford ( 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by Brant County but is politically separate with a municipal government of its own that is fully indep ...

and Goderich Railway (BB&G) began to move train traffic through

Caledonia Caledonia (; ) was the Latin name used by the Roman Empire to refer to the forested region in the central and western Scottish Highlands, particularly stretching through parts of what are now Lochaber, Badenoch, Strathspey, and possibly as ...

between 1852-1856. When the opportunity arose, James Little, founder of the

Haldimand House Haldimand House is an historic building in Caledonia, Ontario that is one of the oldest in the town. At the time of its construction it was the first in Haldimand County to receive a hotel license and was also the first commercial building in Ha ...

, lobbied the town to bankrupt itself to secure a railroad line to pass through

instead of

Cayuga Cayuga often refers to: * Cayuga people, a native tribe to North America, part of the Iroquois Confederacy * Cayuga language, the language of the Cayuga Cayuga may also refer to: Places Canada *Cayuga, Ontario United States * Cayuga, Illinois ...

. This line serviced Jarvis to

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

and was quickly extended out as far as

Port Dover Port Dover is an unincorporated community and former town located in Norfolk County, Ontario, Canada, on the north shore of Lake Erie. It is the site of the recurring Friday the 13th motorcycle rally. Prior to the War of 1812, this community ...

. The 'Railway Hotel' was opened sometime before or during 1860 by William Slater. The first Caledonia

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

was located in the Slater Hotel located where a

Tim Hortons Tim Hortons Inc., known colloquially as Tim's, Timmies, or Timmy's, is a Canadian multinational coffeehouse and restaurant chain with headquarters in Toronto; it serves coffee, Doughnut, donuts, sandwiches, Breakfast sandwich, breakfast egg mu ...

restaurant stands on the North Side of the Grand River. This station burned down in a fire about 1870. When railway traffic increased Grand Trunk realized the benefits of a full-sized station in Caledonia. Around 1877, a station was built on the present location. This station burned down again November 13, 1907, and plans were made for a new, bigger station. The fire also destroyed a

grain elevator A grain elevator or grain terminal is a facility designed to stockpile or store grain. In the grain trade, the term "grain elevator" also describes a tower containing a bucket elevator or a pneumatic conveyor, which scoops up grain from a lowe ...

which had been built by Hull & Old around 1867 as a steam-powered

grist mill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that h ...

. A new elevator was built, which burned to the ground in September 1996, never to be rebuilt. This new, bigger station was to include a passenger

waiting room A waiting room or waiting hall is a building, or more commonly a part of a building or a room, where people sit or stand until the event or appointment for which they are waiting begins. There are two types of physical waiting room. One has in ...

, men's and ladies'

smoking room A smoking room (or smoking lounge) is a room which is specifically provided and furnished for smoking, generally in buildings where smoking is otherwise prohibited. Locations and facilities Smoking rooms can be found in public buildings such ...

s, freight room and two

restrooms A public toilet, restroom, bathroom or washroom is a room or small building with toilets (or urinals) and sinks for use by the general public. The facilities are available to customers, travelers, employees of a business, school pupils or pris ...

, as well as office spaces in the east end. The Ticket Wicket was said to be one of the finest in the Country. Grand Trunk operated the station until the

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company () is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue a ...

took over the building, and the entire Grand Trunk Operation, in 1923. Caledonia ON GTR Railway-Station

At this point, an extended freight and maintenance room was added to the west end of the building. Also at this time, the then popular red "insul-brick" was used to cover up the Grand Trunk colour Scheme of beige and park green. The Station operated under CN Rail until October 1957 when they canceled passenger service to Caledonia,

, Hagersville, and Jarvis. The last "Port Dover Granny" to stop at Caledonia was on October 26, 1957. Parcel and freight service continued until November 1977. CN used the station as a maintenance depot up to the mid-1980s after which it fell into disrepair. In August 1996 CN filed notice to abandon and demolish the station, and subsequently sell off the land on which it stood. Ron Clark of Caledonia purchased the station and donated it to the Special Projects Committee of the Caledonia & Regional Chamber of Commerce, which then formed a Grand Trunk Station Society to maintain the building. Extensive work was done, including new foundations, roof, and restoring the original beige and park Green wooden siding from the Grand Trunk era. The official opening of the newly restored station was held November 27, 1997, fourteen months after work began by the 'Grand Trunk Train Crew'. The restored station now accommodates a Grand Trunk Railway Museum,

office An office is a space where the employees of an organization perform Business administration, administrative Work (human activity), work in order to support and realize the various goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a po ...

s for the Caledonia & Regional Chamber of Commerce, and a meeting room for

community organization Community organization or community based organization refers to organization aimed at making desired improvements to a community's social health, well-being, and overall functioning. Community organization occurs in geographically, psychosocially ...

References

External links

*
Caledonia Grand Trunk Station
- Haldimand County Tourism {{authority control Grand Trunk Railway stations in Ontario Buildings and structures in Haldimand County Museums in Haldimand County Railway museums in Ontario Railway stations in Canada opened in 1908 1908 establishments in Ontario Railway stations in Canada closed in 1977