Belleville station (Ontario)

The Belleville railway station in Belleville, Ontario, Canada is served by Via Rail trains running from Toronto to Ottawa and Montreal. The station is staffed, with ticket sales, vending machines, telephones, washrooms, and wheelchair access to the station and trains.

Belleville
Location	220 Station St., Belleville, Ontario Canada
Coordinates	44°10′46″N 77°22′29″W
Platforms	1 side platform, 1 island platform
Tracks	4
Construction
Parking	Outdoor, pay, long term
Bicycle facilities	bicycle box
Disabled access	Yes
History
Opened	1856
Rebuilt	2012
Services
Preceding station Via Rail Following station Trenton Junction toward Toronto Toronto–Ottawa Napanee toward Ottawa Toronto–Montreal Napanee toward Montreal
Former services
Preceding station Canadian National Railway Following station Port Hope toward Sarnia Maple Leaf Kingston (outer) toward Montreal
National Historic Site of Canada
Designated	1973
Reference no.	7368
Heritage Railway Station (Canada)
Designated	1992
Reference no.	4552

History

1856 Grand Trunk station

Front view of the station in 1989.

Built from bluish-grey Trenton limestone in 1856 by Thomas Brassey for Canadian National Railway predecessor Grand Trunk Railway, the station was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1973[1][2] and protected under the Heritage Railway Stations Protection Act since 1992.[3]

It is the oldest of multiple buildings which were once part of Belleville's GTR station yard, a facility which employed 100 by 1864 and included one of the first three GTR locomotive shops. A new locomotive shop was built in 1867, increasing capacity to 24 engines. GTR cutbacks in December 1876 led to a violent labour dispute on December 29 which stopped all trains; the Queen's Own Rifles militia deployed from Toronto on January 2, 1877 to end the strike. A new round house was built in 1912 to accommodate 42 engines, with a wheel shed and machine shop adjacent. With over a thousand people at its peak, the railway became Belleville's largest local employer.[4]

The 220 Station Street waiting room, a mid-size "Second Class Wayside Station" at the October 27, 1856 inception of the Grand Trunk mainline,[5] served until the adjacent modern station building opened on March 20, 2012.[6] While this building has always served only passengers, with telegraphy and freight located in other buildings, much of the original interior was lost due to 1987 and earlier renovations. Just east of the main station building, a freight shed stored VIA's baggage carts; its basement was home to The Belleville Model Railroad Club[7]

While three original stations from the 1850s Grand Trunk line remain in active use at Georgetown, Port Hope and Napanee, all are small single-storey "Type C" stations (typically five curved arches for windows and doors on the sides and two at each end). Belleville is a larger station ("Type B", six arches) and the last intact original station on the line to have been expanded with a second storey.[4] A similar Outer Station existed at Kingston, but was abandoned in the 1970s and is now in ruins.[8]

1911 Canadian Northern / Canadian Pacific station

CN's historic Grand Trunk station was once one of two active passenger terminals in the city. The Canadian Pacific Railway used a former 1911 Canadian Northern Railway station on Church Street to handle Ottawa-Toronto traffic until 1966; that building was demolished in 1976.[9]

2012 Via Rail station

On November 10, 2010, Via Rail unveiled a design for a modern $18 million station building which would be wheelchair accessible with space to accommodate expanded track lines.[10] Built at 250 Station Street, adjacent to the historic station, the new facility accepted its first passengers on March 20, 2012. MP Daryl Kramp officially opened the station on September 12, 2012.[11]

The original station is marked with a Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada plaque;[12] as of 2012, the city and local groups are looking for new uses for the old station.[13]

References

1. Belleville Railway Station (Grand Trunk), Directory of Designations of National Historic Significance of Canada
2. Belleville Railway Station (Grand Trunk) Archived March 23, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, Canadian Register of Historic Places
3. "Directory of Designated Heritage Railway Stations". Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (Parks Canada). 2010-12-20. Archived from the original on 2013-09-27. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
4. "RSR-90—CNR—Belleville, Ontario". Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
5. "Belleville CNR Station History". Belleville Model Railroad Club. 2012-03-19. Archived from the original on 2013-09-30. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
6. "Open To The Public: Belleville's New Station". VIA Rail. 2012-03-19. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
7. The Belleville Model Railroad Club: About Us Archived June 24, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
8. "RSR-211—CNR—Kingston, Ontario". Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada. Retrieved 2013-09-30.
9. "Belleville Church Street Station". Belleville Model Railroad Club. Archived from the original on 2013-10-01. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
10. Government of Canada and Via Rail Unveil New Belleville Station Design Press Release
11. "VIA Rail's Belleville Station officially open". RT and S. Retrieved September 20, 2012.
12. "Grand Trunk Railway Belleville Historical Plaque". Ontario Plaques. Archived from the original on 2013-09-30. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
13. "VIA station officially open". Belleville Intelligencer. 2012-09-12. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2013-09-28.

External links

• Media related to Belleville Railway Station, Ontario at Wikimedia Commons

• Via Rail station page for Belleville station (Ontario)