194
Mary DoucetteMary was married to a true railway man. Peter Isadore Doucette worked for the railway all over P.E.I., but in 1936 a man by the name of Billy Fisher sent him word that he was to work the Souris division to New Zealand.
Peter and Mary moved to New Zealand and moved into the house that used to be the old Frank Whalen store. Mary recalls Peter getting calls in the middle of the night to go to work.
In the fall, they would sometimes run into bad track. They had to unload the cars, get the track back in shape to travel on, reload the cars and go back on their way.
"He would be up at 5:00am and work all day," Mary says. "I still get up at 5:00 today because I was used to getting up with Peter to get his lunch ready for him." Once CN supplied cook cars for the men, she no longer had to make his lunch for they supplied the meals.
In the many years Peter was with the railway, Mary said they relocated many times, she recalls about 13 moves in all. This was sometimes hard, for with five kids and some still drinking bottles, plus the packing of boxes and finding a place to rent, this could be tough for anyone let alone a young family.
Peter would go looking for a place to rent after finishing a days work. The last move they made was to where Mary lives today, in Mt. Stewart.
In Peter's later years with the railway, near his retirement, he developed some kind of problem with his hands and feet. Mary disturbingly explains, "it was like a cancer of today I suppose."
Great discomfort was felt with these deep cuts on the palm of his hands and soles of his feet yet they did not bleed. With one full year to complete for his full pension and the long laborious years he had already put in, he still worked even though it was very painful.
He was not a young man anymore and the long stretches that he was required to walk was done with great strain. It got to the point that he couldn't even hold the picks or tools properly.
Mary recalls many a night Peter would lie awake with tears in his eyes wondering how she would do if he could not work in order to get his full pension. She used to tell him that she would manage just like everyone else.
Mary's eyes had a glossy look as she remembered the suffering Peter did to finish out the term. Peter did not stay until his term was up, the many long walks took their toll on him in his condition. Mary says, "times were hard but we did O.K., not much style!"
During the 1940's Clifford Cox who was the conductor of the Souris Freight was very good to the Doucette family. When Mary was alone with the kids and needed Peter to come home, she would give the message to Clifford and he would get it to Peter.
Clifford would also let Mary and the kids ride the train for free. Although the Doucette family could not afford to travel on the train a great deal, Christmas was always an exception. They would travel to Charlottetown by train and taxi uptown to see Santa Claus.
Mary recalls her father wondering why she would go through all the trouble of taking five kids to Charlottetown. Since some of the children were still babies, there would be bottles to make, diapers to pack (cloth diapers), lunches to make etc. which would have to last the whole day.
With great persistence she would tell her father that the kids haven't seen Santa Claus and she was taking them, no questions asked. They would leave for Charlottetown at 11:00-11:30 and when they arrived in town they would taxi up to Holman's Mall.
The children must have really wanted to see Santa Claus for they would wait in a long line-up going up to flights of stairs. After seeing Santa they would visit with a family friend, Mrs. Edmund Pitre before returning to the station.
Speaking about Mrs. Edmund Pitre reminded Mary of the day her and Peter got married. "The day we got married we went west to Charlottetown by train, stayed for 2 or 3 days and came back by train."
She also added that, "the wedding was at Mrs. Pitre's house and boy it was cold that morning, Holy Mother was it ever cold!" In some places the roads were blocked solid but this of course was January 1936.
Although Peter put in many long hours and years with the rail he always had time to help others out or enjoy a little bit of leisurely activities.
They would often entertain by cording on the guitar, playing the mouth organ and spoons and do quite a bit of stepdancing.
After Peter died Mary didn't get any of his pension for a while. A friend helped her and inside of a year the small pension started pouring in. She was then able to start paying her bills and get back on track. "And yes, I do miss the rail!"
195
Railway Station1965
St. Louis, Prince Edward Island
196
Maude GillisMaude recalls when her now deceased husband, Brent Gillis used to be a railroad man. Brent started as an "extra" with the extra gangs in 1923 or so. He was called upon to work when they required extra help.
It was not until the spring of 1935 until the fall, in Uigg that he started full time. From January till April he was in O'Leary then transferred to Cardigan working from May until September. He also worked in Hunter River, St. Peters and back to Hunter River. When you were on call you were required to work wherever they needed you. Maude can recall moving seven times in one year, "it was all a part of it."
After all this moving around Brent became a section foreman in January of 1954 for the Cardigan area. "He went on ahead and we moved as a family in August, after school was over and got ready for school over there," recalls Maude.
They remained in Cardigan for 2 years then went back to St. Peters in July of 1956. Brent worked from Mt. Stewart, St. Peters and Souris until he retired in 1963. Maude recalls not having a car so Brent would have to find a ride to work.
This got to be a strain, for Brent was a bad asthmatic. In 1954 he took a bad attack, the doctor said as long as he carried his puffer he would be O.K., and he was. By about 1990, the medication was no longer effective for him. His asthma became so bad that they could no longer control it. "It finally claimed his life," Maude sadly recalls.
In the years that Brent worked as an extra there was a lot of snow shovelling, stuck sometimes for a week to ten days at a time.
"Even at St. Peters Bay, Pinebrook (about 1/4 of a mile from the south side of the bridge), "we had snow storms in those days," she stresses "and the men had to walk over the section every morning."
Brent would walk from St. Peters to Selkirk and a man by the name of Billy Kelly would go from Morell to St. Peters. Other men Brent worked with as a sectionman were Tom Ledwell and George Russell.
Along with the long walks and early mornings, Brent would not always arrive home by 5:00pm. There were some days he would not arrive until 8 or 10pm, depending on what they had to face that day. "I would get up in the early morning to pack a lunch if I didn't pack it the night before," she added. "You would up with the babies anyhow."
There were times when the men were on call to go and run water. They would have to run water off the track area to prevent flooding due to melting snow or heavy spring rains. A lot of water used to gather along the village at the Bay from Cardigan Rd. across the fields. Many times they would have to come home from a days work, have supper, then head back and run water.
"We had a big storm in November of 1938, the washout in Pinebrook," Maude says. Living at the Bay at that time, they awoke the next morning not even knowing it had been storming.
"You see, where we lived we were sheltered from the winds of the storm. The northwest gusts tore everything apart. When we got up the next morning the debris was everywhere, things were flooded, even the neighboring home just next to the bridge (on the northside) near the marsh, with a building with a horse tied up inside of it, was all over by their tool shed with the horse still in it."
The watering tank for the steam engines was located east of Pinebrook, near McInnis' Strawberry lane. Maude said she believed it was torn down in the late 1960's early 1970's.
When asked if she ever made use of the train, "Oh yes, we went on the train. I didn't go often because I couldn't take the kids with me. It would have to be something special before I would pack up and take all the kids with me.
But, I used to travel to Charlottetown to do business - only a short time in town, the train would leave Charlottetown at 2:30pm. We went to Montreal a couple of times, once when my daughters made their profession (both of them became nuns).
We went to the States and Toronto. After Brent retired, once a year or so we would travel to see our families, taking advantage of the free passes. Only once did we take the two youngest to Montreal with us."
Maude can recall in the years of Brent's service when they would take a nurse, Maude Hughes who worked in Morell, to wherever she was needed. She had no other means of travel so they would pick her up and take her to her destinations. They would also take the doctor by trolley car.
As Maude reflects on the years past, "I miss being able to look up over the Bay. When I get back in the summer with my daughter, she has the old homestead now, I enjoy looking out over the Bay. But we miss the train rounds too."
"The loss of the train is really too bad. I always felt it was a step backward rather than ahead. Now there are hardly any trains anywhere. Too many changes, a lot good and a lot bad. People worked so hard and long to get the railroad here in the first place an then to just let it go, it's a shame."
Maude can remember when the train would reach Five Houses location, it would make one or two blows. You knew it was about to come in, during Exhibition time and holidays it a little later than usual. People would go to the station just to see who was coming and going.
The railway meant time for work. The hard times and needing any kind of work often meant heading elsewhere for employment. Such times as Harvest time in the Prairie's would find excursion trains full of able workers.
There would be all kinds of people leaving in July-August, some would stay out there and the rest would return. People also went across to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia to work in the lumber camps.
"Hard times then and hard times now. Its get an education or nothing. It got so machine took over the place of man," Maude says and she also noted this was a great thing to collect all the information on the railway.
197
Railway Station1940
Bloomfield, Prince Edward Island
198
Frank and Elda WhalenBesides the regular railroad crew of engineers, conductors and the like, extra men were hired to help the sectionmen with maintaining the track. One of these men hired for the "extra gang," as they were called, was Frank Whalen of New Zealand.
He worked for eight years (1936-1944) on the extra gang, during which time he was assistant foreman and two years working in the freight shed in Souris. The following information is an account of duties he performed and the experiences he had while working for the railway.
As stated previously, the extra gang worked with sectionmen to maintain the track. This usually required replacing ties and rails or stabilizing the track bed. Often holes would appear below the ties in the spring when the ground was soft.
These required filling to prevent derailment from an uneven track. When the ground was frozen and bumps would appear under the track, shims were used to level out the track.
Maintaining the track also included repairing bridges. This often meant working at a shop in Charlottetown making or repairing pieces used in bridge construction and putting the bridges in place.
Before the years when sprays were used, the track bed had to be weeded by hand and the young trees and shrubs trimmed back. This was not easy work, as the men put in long hours in the heat and the flies, bent over pulling weeds. This job required perfection, for inspectors checking their work would make them go back if it was not done properly. The thoughts of weeding 8-10 miles of track made the workers very restless!
Another duty performed during the months of April and May was taking the accumulated coal ash from the Charlottetown Station and distributing it along the Island tracks as a track bed stabilizer.
Because of the huge amounts of coal ash, larger crews were employed to handle the work. In many cases, this work required these extra gangs to be away from home for weeks at a time. The railway made accommodations for them in box cars converted into sleepers with a cookhouse.
The gangs stayed there for a two week period during which time a sheet was to be filled out listing who stayed there and how many meals they had. At the end of this time, the tally would be given to the men and they would pay this out of their earnings.
Meals cost roughly 22 cents a piece, but considering the men were only paid $2.00 per day, less 2 cents for railroad insurance and still in 1941, 7 cents for unemployment insurance, three meals a day for two weeks could take quite a chunk from their paychecks.
In terms of the cookhouse, very strict regulations had to be adhered to. Frank Whalen, as well as being assistant foremen, was the cook for these men and remembers well. There was no refrigeration and flies could be a problem on uncovered food, which could lead to food poisoning.
The cookhouse had to be meticulously cleaned using clean fresh water that was hauled from a nearby stream and the food was covered to prevent anyone from becoming ill. There were regular inspections of the cookhouse which kept the cooks on their toes.
As mentioned before, Mr. Whalen also worked in the freight shed in Souris as coal man from 1944-46, which was busy enough to require an additional agent to the regular station agent. One of the jobs here required loading coal on the trains.
This was a hectic procedure as the train needed around 5 tons of coal to go from Souris to Charlottetown and often the coalmen only had 45 minutes to do the job. Coal was loaded in buckets that were on small trolleys or wagons.
Each bucket held 1 ton of coal and when it was full, the wagon was pushed to a hoist. The hoist, powered by steam from the train, lifted the bucket and dumped it in the train. This was difficult, dirty work with the coalmen coming out at the end of a shift, black from head to toe with only the whites of their eyes showing.
Another job to be done at the freight shed was heating the reefer cars used to haul potatoes during the winter. The fumes in these cars were deadly and it was said a person wouldn't last ten minutes inside one.
A story was told of an agent at Elmira who, for some reason or another, had to get inside one of these cars. When he went to get out, the fresh air hit him and he passed out. Luckily, he didn't fall back into the car but was noticed a short time later by a train hand near the entrance of the car and was pulled out.
A lot of terminology surrounded the railway some of which was explained by Mr. Whalen. One of these terms was "elevation." It was said this was the first thing asked among railway workers from different locations when they met up. "What is the elevation here?"
Elevation referred to the slant put on the rails to enable the train to go around curved portions of the track without tipping over. Due to the construction of the train's wheels, one side of the rail had to be built up 1 to 2 inches to accommodate the trains going around a curve.
As a rule of thumb, the tighter the turn, the higher the elevation. An elevation of 2 or more inches meant a very tight turn. Because the Island's tracks were built with a lot of twists and turns the narrow gage track was too narrow and "tippy" for the train. As a result, wide gage was introduced in the late 1920's for more stability.
"Spur" and "siding" were other terms often mentioned. Both terms refer to an extra section of track off the main route. Although, a siding is a track you can drive on and come off without turning around or backing up whereas, a spur is a section you have to turn or back up to come off.
Box cars were pulled onto sidings so they could be loaded and unloaded and go on their way without being held up. These cars could be picked up later as the train passed through. They could also be used if two trains met so they could pass each other.
A spur, such as the Souris Spur or the Georgetown Spur, took the train into communities that the main track did not pass through. A bumper to help stop the train was located at the very end of this section. For the train to get back to the main track, a roundhouse or a Y in the track was used.
In the early beginnings of the railway in Souris, the roundhouse was used. This building consisted of a large turn table onto which the engine would drive and be turned around.
There were four different size rails, differing in their weights. The rails over the years were made heavier to support the increasingly heavier loads being transported over them. The first rails were 56', meaning every yard of rails weighed 56lbs.
In 1941, the 56's were replaced with 80's and in later years 85's replaced those. The fourth size was 105's. These rails were welded together as it was found that rails wore at their joints (where one rail butted onto another). Longer rails meant less joints and less wear.
It could then attach to the cars and drive out of Souris. When the Elmira section was under construction, a Y shaped intersection was built in 1911. This enabled the train to back down from Elmira, turn, and head west. The same was done for the train coming out of Souris. This eliminated a roundhouse being maintained in both Souris and Elmira and the train cars being hauled caboose first.
Over the years many men worked on the railroad as engineers, firemen, baggagemasters and as part of the extra gangs. One man who was especially dedicated to the railroad was Harry Leslie. Being Elda's father as well as Frank's boss, both knew him well and could attest to his faithfulness and dedication to the railroad.
Mr. Leslie served the railroad for 40 years from 1925 to 1965, never missing a day. Besides being dedicated to his work, he was also dedicated to the people in the community in their time of need. He often used the railroad trolley to transport a doctor to many a medical emergency when roads were impassible due to mud and snow.
He also showed the same dedication to his family as, he used to pile them all on the trolley and make his way to mass at St. Mary's Church in Souris when there was no other possible way to get there. In addition to his years on the railway, Mr. Whalen also delivered mail and operated a store from 1946 to 1983.
His store, located across the road from his house and alongside of the tracks in New Zealand, was a big meeting place. Anyone and everyone who was waiting for the train inhabited the little store, as well as the simply curious who wanted to see who was waiting for or coming off the train.
Some people would then leave the social atmosphere of the store to make their own on the noon train. Many a card game was had during these trips, which in some cases, were made all the "happier" after a trip to the liquor store in Souris.
William Praught and Mr. MacInnis were on the second last car of the train and were riding the car down to the water tank where they expected the train to stop. They didn't know the train had stayed in Elmira overnight and had gotten water there. When they realized the train was not stopping, they decided to jump off. Mr. MacInnis jumped clear, but Mr. Praught didn't.
A fire was kept going near the water tank to keep the water from freezing during the winter. The ashes were shovelled from this fire and piled alongside of the track. It was these ashes that Mr. Praught fell on and rolled beneath the train. It had often been said that, had they been on the last train car, Mr. Praught would simply have rolled onto the track behind the train and been unhurt.
To make a tragic story even more tragic, Mr. Praught was engaged to a girl from Souris and Frank they were to be married in the fall.
The station in New Zealand was originally on the south side of the track. After the tracks were changed (shifted to wide gauge), they found it necessary to move the station. In the 1930's, it was moved to the south side of the track. In the late 1940's, Mr. Whalen built his store just south of the station. The store is still standing.
199
Railway Station1965
Emerald Junction, Prince Edward Island
200
Charlottetown GuardianNovember 20th, 1968
CNR May Ask To End Provinces's Rail Service Target Date About 3 Years
CNR will apply to the Canadian Transport Commission for authority to withdraw it's railway service in Prince Edward Island. They hope to be out of both passenger and freight train service within two or three years. The railway would, as a substitute, operate a truck service for freight and a bus service for passengers.
P.E.I. Railway will likely argue that the present rail service is a heavy money loser and that there has been a drop off in demand for it's service, particularly for passenger trains. The CNR will probably also argue that plans for improvements in the province's highways and the much more economical operation of buses and trucks would aid in reducing it's losses without any serious drop in quality of the service now being provided.
201
Railway StationOctober, 1982
Emerald Junction, Prince Edward Island
202
Ollie (Gallant) PetersOllie said her father, James H. Gallant, used to work on the railroad but she was too young to remember much about the time he worked on it. She recalls another man, "Jimmy Railroad Jack," from Selkirk, who also worked with her father (his last name may be McInnis).
She recalls as a young girl, selling berries to the train men and the boys selling rabbits and grouse. The St. Charles Station used to be black with people meeting the train. Some of the men used to take a trip on the train just to meet their buddies and play cards on the train.
203
Railway CrossingJuly, 1980
Glencorradale, Prince Edward Island
204
Norman BruceShortly after Norman and his wife Thelma were married, they went to Charlottetown by car to do some shopping one cold winter day. As the day progressed so did the snow, and thus another P.E.I. snowstorm.
As the roads became impassable this prompted a journey on the train to their home in South Lake. A friend later took their car home for them from Charlottetown.
As a farmer, Norman often ordered lime for his land. He had to shovel it from the freight cars into bags and load it on the sleigh for the trip home. He also remembers when railway cars were filled with straw for bedding and loaded with live pigs and cattle, the door had to be left partially open for air, they also had to build gates to keep the animals from getting out.
Baby chicks and ducks also came in by train from Island hatcheries, this was usually in the spring and they had to be taken home quickly as the cold air would kill them.
Freight cars would often have to move back a few feet to get backed in to unload potatoes. This was done by releasing a lever, using a wooden handle to pry up on the car, thus moving it a few inches each time. With the introduction to tractors in later years, they were used to move the cars.
When shipping potatoes it was the crew's responsibility for keeping the fire up in the stove of the cars. Sometimes it would be windy, raining, sleeting, or snowing, so perching on the top of a freight car trying to get the stove going was anything but pleasant. In later years they were heated by oil with pipes running along the bottom of the cars. It took longer to heat, but was much easier to use.
Cars were checked by the train crew to make sure the heaters were working, without the heaters the potatoes would freeze. In later years when shipping was done by truck it was more convenient. Trucks came right to the warehouse and delivery was right to the customer.
Crews were hired to shovel snow on the line, drifts were so high in places that ledges would have to be made for men to reach the top of the cutting. The men would be shovelling in tiers with two or three men on each tier.
Men working cutting wood near the station would often go to the station and have lunch with the section men. Pulpwood was loaded in Elmira along with bailed hay. Rails and ties were kept at stations for easy access to replace any damaged ones.
Those who were called for jury duty took the train. People who had to go to the hospital took the train, those too sick to sit up turned the seats in order to make a makeshift bed.
It was once said that one man drove his car down the tracks.
In closing Norman says that as the railway changed and closed so did the times. "We have lost some of the community's closeness that seemed stronger in early times and in the days of one room schools."
205
Retired Caboose now a summer cottage1974
St. Margaret's, Prince Edward Island
206
Albert and Mae GallantAmong those who travelled by train were high school students. The St. Peters courthouse doubled as a high school and students from New Zealand through to Selkirk boarded the train for their trip there and also to come back.
In 1946 or 1947, some of the students who attended the schools in St. Peters were as
follows; Howard (Jimmy Gob) McInnis, Mae MacPhee and Mary (John Andrew) MacCormack of Selkirk, Katherine and Michael Gallant of St.Charles, Tommy McGaugh and Billy Whalen of Bear River and Margarite McInnis, Viola and
Helen MacCormack all of New Zealand.
Train fare was five dollars a month and each student had a red pass card to be punched morning and evening. If the card ran out and the student didn't have the money to pay for another one right then, they could bring a piece of cardboard to be punched and pay for those trips later.
They were grateful to the conductor, Bill Doyle, for letting them do this as money was scarce during the winter and sometimes they just didn't have it when the card ran out. Working with the conductor during time were brakeman Tom Davis and baggage master Wilfred Wright.
In 1942, the Co-op run by the MacAdams in Selkirk went out of business. To keep the Co-op in the community, two members were asked to take it over - Johnny Roddie MacPhee and Art Cahill. The store was renamed Cahill and MacPhee's General Store and was operated out of Mr. MacPhee's house. In
addition to this store and one owned by Mike MacIntyre, people in the area often travelled to St. Peters to buy meat at Ralph Sandersons Meat Shop.
The post office in Selkirk was run by Mike MacIntrye and later by Joe McInnis. In 1969, the post offices of most rural communities, including Selkirk, moved to Souris.
New technology and fuel sources made way for the diesel engine, making the steam engine obsolete. In the early 1940's the first diesel train passed through Selkirk. The engineer who drove through Selkirk spotted an elderly woman and her granddaughter, who he recognized, waiting for the freight train. Thinking they
might enjoy a trip on the test train, he called them aboard and dropped them off at their destination, Bear River. It is not certain as to what date the diesel train started being used on a permanent basis.
The railroad slowly started to diminish as years passed and service, especially passenger service, was discontinued. Most of the railroad buildings were either bought and made into homes, were used as storage houses, or were left on site. The station house in Selkirk was sold to Ed McInnis and moved to Monticello and is now owned by Philip Gallant.
The St. Charles Station was sold to Ed McInnis of St.Charles and used for storage. The present owners of the former station house are Warren and Sharon Foulkes of St. Charles. The potato grading house at St. Charles burned to the ground in the fall of 1964 or 1965 during a dry spell. An older caboose was purchased by a man from Montreal and was moved to the cliffs at St. Margarets beach and is now being used as a cottage .
Selkirk was a busy place at one time. On the west side of the Selkirk Road, there was
MacIntyre's Store and Post Office
-Post Office and possibly the store opened in 1925 and closed down in 1960. Owned by Mike MacIntyre.
Selkirk School
-Still standing and still in use for meetings.
MacPhee's Blacksmith Shop
-This shop was a forage and a woodworking shop. Owned by Hughie Roddie MacPhee. In operation approximately, 1920's, 1930's.
Co-op
-This store had three previous owners. The first was Angus McCormack. The second owner was Ronald J. MacAdam, who was running it during the time of the First World War. In later years the Co-op (I'm assuming a group of resident's acting as a cooperative) took over the store and hired A.J. MacAdam as bookkeeper and manager. In 1942, the Co-op went under. John Roddie MacPhee and Art Cahill, two Co-op members, purchased the contents and made their own store at Mr. MacPhee's home.
Warehouse
-The warehouse was built to house goods for the store by the MacAdam's, the store owners at the time. It was located north of the store.
Steam Mill
-MacAdam's also owned a steam mill, which was located about 100 yards west of the store. Water was pumped from the West River to provide steam for this steam-powered sawmill. This mill operated previous to the mid to late 1920's. Its start up date in unknown.
On the east side of the road there was
MacPhee's Store
-This store was opened in 1942 by John Roddie MacPhee and Art Cahill after the closure of the Co-op. It was a general store selling anything from sugar to animal feed and was part of the MacPhee home, located at the front of the house.
Oakin's Store
-This store was operated during the early 1900's and was believed to have closed before 1921 or 1922. The owner was a Mr. MacEachern who was nicknamed Oakin hence the name Oakin's store. Like the MacPhee store, this store was attached to the front part of the house.
This is the "Store, House, Mill" that was talked about in Frank MacKinnon's story, with the house and store belonging to the MacEachern's and the Mill being Larkin's Mill. However, during the time this store was in operation, Larkin's Mill
was actually (Big Archie) MacCormack's Mill. It changed hands twice before becoming Larkin's Mill in 1937, the owners being Gabriel MacDonald in 1920 and Albert Quigley in the 1930's.
Shovelers were paid around two dollars an hour.
Vince Murphy was a station agent in St.Peters.
The passenger service stopped around 1964 or 1965 not to sure about the date.
Willie Johnny Alan MacKinnon use to light the stove in the station house in Selkirk. Daniel McInnis did so as well, after Mr. MacKinnon retired.
A railroad truck used to go along the tracks (purpose unknown).
207
Old trolly car for repairs now at the Elmira Railway Museum31 August 2002
Elmira, Prince Edward Island
 |
 |
 |
 |