The Galt, Preston and Hespeler Street Railway (GP&H) was an interurban electric street railway connecting the three nearby communities of Galt, Preston, and later Hespeler in Waterloo County (now Waterloo Region), Ontario, Canada.[1] The firm was organized in 1890, and began operation in 1894. In 1908 it merged with the Preston and Berlin Street Railway, with the new entity called the Berlin, Waterloo, Wellesley, and Lake Huron Railway Company.[2][3]
 The GP&H car barn and union station with the Preston and Berlin Street Railway in Preston. | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Reporting mark | GP&H |
| Locale | Waterloo County, Ontario, Canada |
| Dates of operation | 1894–1908 |
| Predecessor | Galt and Preston Street Railway |
| Successor | Berlin, Waterloo, Wellesley, and Lake Huron Railway |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge |
| Electrification | Overhead 600 V DC |
In 1911, the line reached Hespeler, Berlin (later called Kitchener) and Waterloo. In 1914, the company was incorporated as the Grand River Railway. By 1916, the line was extended to Brantford/Port Dover.[4][5][2]
See also edit
References edit
- ^
"History of electric rail transportation". Cambridge web. 2009. Retrieved 2017-03-15.
In 1894 with the completion of the Galt-Preston line, a charter to build an electric rail line between Preston and Berlin (Kitchener) was granted to Thomas Todd of Galt (President of the G & P), Fred Clare of Preston and J.A. Fennel of Kitchener. For various reasons, the Preston and Berlin Street Railway lay dormant until 1900 when it was reorganized.
- ^ a b "PRESTON & BERLIN STREET RAILWAY COMPANY LIMITED PRESTON & BERLIN RAILWAY COMPANY LIMITED". Trainweb. 19 July 2004. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
- ^ "GRAND RIVER RAILWAY". Trainweb. 19 July 2004. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
- ^ "CAMBRIDGE AND ITS INFLUENCE ON WATERLOO REGION'S LIGHT RAIL TRANSIT". Waterloo Region. 19 January 2017. Retrieved 10 March 2017.
- ^ Mills, Rych (10 January 2017). "Flash From the Past: Preston Car and Coach goes up in smoke". Record. Kitchener. Retrieved 10 March 2017.
Further reading edit
- Mills, John M. (1977). Traction on The Grand: The Story of Electric Railways along Ontario's Grand River Valley. Railfare Enterprises. ISBN 0-919130-27-5.
External links edit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Galt, Preston and Hespeler electric railway.