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McKirdy

Crowther Station McKirdy Station Paju Station

McKirdy was a series of stops likely named after William McKirdy, a prominent official and businessman in the Nipigon/Lake Nipigon area at the time. It was composed of two stations/stops, located at Mileposts 49.7/99.4 and 50.1/99.8 respectively, and a ballast pit located at Milepost 52.3/102.

East McKirdy was a flag stop which first appeared on railway timetables in 1938 with a 10-car spur, while McKirdy was regarded as a “station” but only had a siding. Both appear on the 1970s edition topographic map but the spur at East McKirdy was removed in 1956 and siding at McKirdy was removed from service in 1965. A section house was located a quarter-mile east of East McKirdy. Why there were two stops each with its own siding/spur located less than half a mile apart is unknown.

The McKirdy Pit was in operation for many years, likely from the time of construction until the line was discontinued in 2005 (there is firm evidence it dates back to the 1920s and anecdotal that it was created during the construction of the line). A 1733/2500/2800-foot through spur serviced the pit, which evidence suggests was originally on the south side of the grade, and later moved to the north side of the grade. Interestingly the spur does not appear in railway timetables until at least 1973 and is not shown in the 1979 edition topographic map (known officially as Pit Track KI-44). The pit became the location of a reinstated McKirdy Station in 1986 and was removed again prior to 2005.

Click here to see a 2009 Google Streetview image the grade just east of McKirdy with the rails still in place.

East McKirdy