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(erielack) Hurricane Agnes Detours

Dale and List,

The August 1972 issue of the Upper Canada Railway Society Newsletter provided a complete listing of all Agnes detours through Toronto and Hamilton, and I still have that issue (I wasn't actually remembering all those details). By that time EL had become my favorite RR (with LV a close second), and I remember being majorly bummed out that I had missed all the action (I was working out of town at summer camp). I am more than happy to share this list with anyone interested. There were 73 EL and 2 LV detours (no PC), all handled by CN and CP crews. Both LV trains were handled by CN, probably via Suspension Bridge at the Falls. 

Routing for EL detours was as follows:

CN: PC-International Bridge-Ft Erie-CN-Hamilton-Toronto (via York sub)-Coteau-Cantic-Rouses Point-D&H

CP: PC or N&W-Int'l Bridge-Welland-TH&B-Hamilton-CP-Toronto-Montreal-Rouse Point-D&H

Note that CN trains bypassed Montreal to the south on the Coteau sub (which has since been abandoned). TH&B didn't directly serve either Toronto or Buffalo; it's line extended from Welland to Hamilton. From there CP had trackage rights over CN to suburban Etobicoke. On the D&H, trains for the B&M at Mechanicville made a left turn at Ballston Spa; I'm not sure of the routing for the others. I imagine the LV detours went over Ararat. The EL's may have done that also, or operated into Bingo or accessed the Delaware Div'n at Jeff Jct. (or 2 or all of the above). The Maybrook trains NE-74/NE-97 were regular visitors and were probably handed over to PC at Albany or Schenectady.

Paul B

If Steve's memory isn't better than mine, I will add that anecdotally, some 
trains that didn't cross at Detroit, ran PC to Buffalo, TH&B or CN to 
Toronto and either CN or CP east of Toronto to connect with the xNYC 
Montreal line or the D&H before turning south again.  PC may have run some 
trains that way too.

Dale

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