Video of the former Canadian Northern Railway/CN-Kinghorn (Dorion) Subdivision (MP 110.6-115.2) east of Cameron Falls, ON. Features the grade as it passes through MacAskill Siding, which went through numerous name changes during its history. A rare structure, likely a small tool shed, sits at western end of the siding.
Part 5 of 6.
Active, 1914-2005.
Video of the former Canadian Northern Railway/CN-Kinghorn (Dorion) Subdivision (MP 110.6-115.2) east of Cameron Falls, ON. Features the grade as it passes through a sharp 90-degree bend (what I call “The Angle”) with numerous high embankments, telegraph poles, cuts and the remains of a wheel flange greaser.
Part 4 of 6.
Active, 1914-2005.
Video of the former Canadian Northern Railway/CN-Kinghorn (Dorion) Subdivision (MP 110.6-115.2) east of Cameron Falls, ON. Features the grade as it passes through a number of curves and over Polly Creek with telegraph poles, culverts and milepost markers.
Part 3 of 6.
Active, 1914-2005.
Video of the former Canadian Northern Railway/CN-Kinghorn (Dorion) Subdivision (MP 110.6-115.2) east of Cameron Falls, ON. Features the grade south of the former flag stop at Milepost 61.4/111.1 with telegraph poles, cuttings, embankments and a culvert over a branch of Polly Creek.
Part 2 of 6.
Active, 1914-2005.
Video of the former Canadian Northern Railway/CN-Kinghorn (Dorion) Subdivision (MP 110.6-115.2) east of Cameron Falls, ON. Features the grade south of Hogarth Station as it passes through a swampy area reaching a former flag stop and siding (1939-1946) at Milepost 61.4/111.1.
Part 1 of 6.
Active, 1914-2005.
Video of the former Canadian Northern Railway/CN-Kinghorn (Dorion) Subdivision (MP 106.1-110.6) east of Cameron Falls, ON. Features the grade at the western end of Hogarth Station with signage and the remains of the siding.
Part 8 of 8.
Active, 1914-2005.
Video of the former Canadian Northern Railway/CN-Kinghorn (Dorion) Subdivision (MP 106.1-110.6) east of Cameron Falls, ON. Features the grade as it passes through Hogarth Siding, the longest on the line, with the remains of the water tank and possibly a section house.
Part 7 of 8.
Active, 1914-2005.
Video of the former Canadian Northern Railway/CN-Kinghorn (Dorion) Subdivision (MP 106.1-110.6) east of Cameron Falls, ON. Features the grade from the Cash Creek Trestle to Hogarth Siding with signage, culverts and a significant washout that threatens to sever the line in the area.
Part 6 of 8.
Active, 1914-2005.
Video of the former Canadian Northern Railway/CN-Kinghorn (Dorion) Subdivision (MP 106.1-110.6) east of Cameron Falls, ON. Features the 475-foot long trestle over Cash Creek (whose original name was Gash Creek), which was constructed in 1924 and cost $112,000 at the time. This structure is the second highest on the line after the Blende River Viaduct (https://youtu.be/RW7mF35xBY0).
Part 5 of 8.
Active, 1914-2005.
One hundred and twenty years ago tomorrow, the Gunflint and Lake Superior Railroad (G&LS) was incorporated in the State of Minnesota. Owned by the Pigeon River Lumber Company, a Wisconsin business headquartered in Port Arthur (Thunder Bay), Ontario, the logging line was built to harvest timber along the southwest shore of Gunflint Lake and adjacent areas in the northeast part of the state.
The G&LS was in operation between 1902 and 1909 and branched off the Canadian Northern Railway Duluth Extension (originally the Port Arthur, Duluth & Western) at Milepost 79. It was likely the most unusual railroad in all of North America as it was an American line, but had no terminus in the US and its only access was via Canada. All the timber harvested in Minnesota was shipped to the company’s mill in Port Arthur for processing.
Today there are vestiges of the line still visible, but they are rapidly disappearing. The photos, taken between 1997 and 2016, along with the map (which shows the area in 1911), covers the initial few miles of the line as passes from Ontario across the international boundary into Minnesota. Corduroyed logs, some rails and even a line shaft from a Shay locomotive litter the route. The most amazing remnant of the line was a massive corduroyed log trestle on the south shore of the lake beside the Crab River, which helped it climb the massive ridges in the area. Unfortunately the trestle was burned in a 2007 fire and the following winter the Forest Service was forced to dynamite it to extinguish the smoldering embers inside.
Poverty, Agony, Distress & Want! 