"A Quieter Gentler Time"  

35.5"x 23", oil on hard board

     In a Private Collection         

Limited edition prints available, see below

    In 1910 when the Waterloo Train Station was new it was described by the Waterloo Sentinel, in an article dated September 16, 1910, as an impressive station and one of the best designs of architectural beauty in the GTR system. In 1917, the Grand Trunk Railway was absorbed into the Canadian National Railway system. In the transition, the Waterloo station became C.N. property. The Waterloo station employed four men: the agent, the telegrapher, the express agent and the express driver. Picnics and other types of excursions from Waterloo to St. Jacob's and Elmira were big business in those days. Mr. J.C. Cunningham, the last passenger agent there, recalls: "People in Waterloo just wanted to get out of town for a hour or two and would use the train; the fare was 30 cents to Elmira and 50 cents return."

    After the 1920's, passenger traffic gradually began to dwindle under the impact of the automobile. The CNR finally ran its last passenger train out of Waterloo in 1934. In the 1950's and 60's the station was used as a warehouse by Hogg Fuel and Supply Ltd. For two more decades the station stood empty and boarded up. Then in 1994 the city of Waterloo bought the station from C.N. and partially restored the old building putting it up for lease.

   In 1991 I was looking for a subject to paint that reflected the history of the Waterloo area when I happened upon the old train station. After doing the research and numerous sketches I began to paint the restored view of the station as it would of appeared in 1927.

Limited Edition Lithographic Print Available: Image size 30¾ x 19 inches