Tay Heritage Committee
“Spanning the waters of Hog (sic) Bay near Victoria Harbour, a great wooden trestle bridge was built in 1908 to connect the Canadian Pacific Railroad from grain elevators at Port McNicoll. 2,141 feet long and 50 feet high, it was one of the largest wooden structures on the continent. The pine timbers were 8″ by 16”, and pilings of B.C. fir were 65’ long. The builder was Mike McPeake of Port McNicoll. Patrolled by armed guards in both World Wars, this unique and handsome bridge was last used in 1971 and demolished in 1978.” *
*(Simcoe County Historical Association plaque, 1981)
Port McNicoll
After 1905 the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) decided to build its own Georgian Bay terminal near Victoria Harbour on the southern shore.
Later named Port McNicoll, the site would provide a fine harbour and a location easily reached by train, resulting in a more direct and shorter route for shipping western wheat to the eastern seaboard.
In 1908, construction began on a two-million-bushel grain elevator, a three-thousand-foot wharf, two railway stations, the surrounding town site, and a 2,141-foot-long wooden trestle bridge over Hogg Bay. The CPR completed the rail link from its Coldwater junction in the same year. In 1912, the CPR moved its five-steamship fleet from Owen Sound to Port McNicoll.
CPR ships brought in grain to Port McNicoll and carried passengers on the return trip. CPR freight trains carried grain south and east; CPR passenger trains brought passengers north to the waiting ships. The rail link would extend from Lindsay to Port McNicoll.
An Engineering Marvel
When the CPR decided to build a new Great Lakes port at Port McNicoll, it needed to complete a spur line from its Coldwater junction to the new terminal. However the rival Grand Trunk Railway (GTR) already had a rail line into Midland and would not allow the CPR to cross their line.
Upon reaching the southern shore of Georgian Bay in 1907, the CPR was faced with the challenge of completing track to Port McNicoll without a level crossing of Hwy 12 or of the rival GTR line, and without skirting Hogg Bay.
Its solution involved the CPR subway (“the hole in the wall”) * over Hwy 12, a subsidiary bridge over the GTR line (now the Tay Shore Trail), and the Hogg Bay trestle bridge. * (See “The Hole In The Wall” at taytownshipheritage@wordpress.com)
Built by a local craftsman, Mike McPeake, the trestle bridge was to be an engineering marvel. At 2,141 Ft., it would be the longest of its kind in Canada, and an impressive example of early Canadian railroad engineering. McPeake, a local builder without an engineering degree, proceeded to lay out a graceful curve, beginning at the site of the CPR subway.
In the winter of 1907, crews began construction by pounding down 65 foot long timbers of B.C fir, using horse-powered pile drivers. The body of the bridge was made up of 145 spans, constructed of red and white pine timbers, 8 inches wide and 16 inches deep. The trestle was completed in 1908.
A 37-40 car grain train would not span the length of the trestle. Pony rails were laid inside of the travelling rails s that, should the train derail, the inner tracks would catch the wheels and prevent the train from going over the side. Every 100 0r so feet, there was a barrel stand with a pail and a barrel of water in case of fire. Guards and work crews on foot could step into these when a train was coming.
This rail line saved much time for trains running to and from Port McNicoll and helped it to become a once thriving community.
The trestle was so important to Port McNicoll and even Canada that during World Wars I and II it was watched by armed guards. It was feared that German spies might try to burn or blow up the strategic bridge over which so much wheat was shipped by rail to eastern seaports.
The trestle was last used in 1971* and, sadly, was dismantled in 1978 owing to concerns for safety and cost of maintenance
*The Hole in the Wall was also removed from service in 1971, and later bypassed by a much-improved alignment of Hwy 12. The bridge over the Tay Shore Trail has been removed except for the two concrete supports. These remnants recall the profound impact of the railway era in Tay township in the century after 1875.
Chronology
1879 The Midland Railway, later The Grand Trunk Railway (GTR), completed from Port Hope to Midland.
1907 The “Hole-in-the Wall” subway completed for the CPR
1908 The Hogg Bay trestle bridge completed
1908 CPR track from Port McNicoll to Coldwater (12 miles) completed
1908 Construction of docks, grain elevator, passenger terminals, etc. in Port McNicoll begun.
1912 CPR track extended from Coldwater to Lindsay (76 miles)
1912 5-ship CPR fleet moved from Owen Sound to Port McNicoll
1956 Steam locomotives replaced by Diesel
1965 Train passenger service discontinued
1971 Port McNicoll – Coldwater track, including the Hogg Bay trestle bridge and Hole- in- the – Wall subway, removed from service. The CPR contracted for running rights over CNR track and built new track around Hogg Bay to reach Port McNicoll
c.1975 Realignment of Hwy 12 completed
1978 Trestle bridge demolished
1989 The loss of the federal government grain rate subsidy resulted in the end of grain movements through Port McNicoll
1991 Last freight train from Port McNicoll
Sources
A Brief history of Tay Township at https://taytownshipheritage.wordpress.com/2012/06/12/a-brief-history-of-tay-township/
Haskill, Mary. “The Town the CPR Built,” Nosing into the Past: Life and Times in Huronia. Huronia Museum, 2002
Leitch, Adelaide A.: The Visible Past, the Pictorial History of Simcoe County, The County of Simcoe, 1992
Old Time Trains http://www.trainweb.org/oldtimetrains/CPR_Trenton/Port/History_gbs.htm
Railway Pages, https://railwaypages.com/georgian-bay-seaboard-railway
The King’s Highways, at http://www.thekingshighway.ca/PHOTOS/Hwy12photos.htm
“The Hole In The Wall” at taytownshipheritage.wordpress.com/
Todd, J. Huronia’s Past and Present, Facebook Post 2017
hooker123
taytownshipstudentp
tjfegarty
William J. Gibson
Tay Township Heritage 
re Hogg Bay Trestle.
As there are plenty of erroneous statements about the dimensions of the Trestle on various websites, would it not be in the interest of ‘Heritage Committee’ to attempt their correction?