Middleton Railway Museum
61 School Street B0S 1P0 Middleton, NS, Canada

I know many of you have seen this GoFundMe link and have shared or contributed. Thanks. I'm reposting to reach people the Facebook algorithm has missed. Please help us restore the Middleton Railway Museum to its former glory and celebrate the incredible history, culture, and heritage of the railway that was the single most important piece of infrastructure in the farming, forestry, and mining industries in the Annapolis Valley. In 1869 the Windsor and Annapolis Railway, late...r owned by CPR and operated by the Dominion Atlantic Railway (DAR), was completed and a small railway station was built. In 1889 the Nova Scotia Central Central Railway (NSCR), later owned by CNR, opened a line between Bridgewater and Middleton . It was because of these two railway lines that Middleton was the rail freight terminal of the Annapolis Valley in the early 1900s. The gift of CN Steam Locomotive 1521 to the museum truly represents the era that carried iron ore from Torbrook Mines to Middleton and on to Port Wade. MRMS has plans to restore the Station, which was built in 1916, and the CN Steam Locomotive that was built in 1905. If you can help out through a donation or by sharing this link, we at the railway museum would be very appreciative. https://gofund.me/16a2c0da See more

We're getting back on track with our GoFundMe campaign now that Christmas is over. Let's make 2021 the Year of the Railway Museum!!! You can help out be making a donation or sharing this post! Thanks.

This is a very rough video of the locomotive being place on the tracks today. I just wanted to get something up right away. Major video in the works right now. https://youtu.be/N7MnZr9U3H4

The Middleton Railway Museum recently acquired a real, 75-ton steam locomotive and it will be arriving in Middleton within days! We need funds to help with some immediate projects to make the old railway station safe and warm for our volunteers and for our future visitors. Help if you can. Share if you wish. Thanks in advance!

Today was the BIG day! Our 115-year-old steam locomotive was lifted off a giant flatbed truck and onto the new train tracks CN built for us this fall. Everything went without a hitch and the A.W. Leil crew even put the bell, smokestack, and steam dome back on for us. And of course the tender car that back in the day would have held the water and the coal. Adam Cudmore and crew from AW Leil was fantastic, John 'The Trainman' MacDonald spearheaded the project for the Middleton ...Railway Museum, and museum board chair Dianne Hankinson LeGard kept everyone motivated. And of course Rick Jacques from the Annapolis Valley Trails Coalition was there to tend to all the little details and troubleshoot any problem that arose. Thanks to CN board chair Robert Pace. Giant thankyou to Tiffany Edwards with CN. Thanks to Evan Fairn in the Premier's office. Thanks to Stephen McNeil! Thanks to Annapolis County for donating the train in the first place. And a special thanks to all the people who showed up bright and early to watch it happen. Major video will be posted later! See more

I just found this on YouTube!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zF22lea-4Q

Middleton Train Station, circa 1927

Today was a milestone for the Middleton Railway Museum. AW Leil Cranes & Equipment lifted our locomotive onto a flatbed and it will arrive at the Middleton Railway Museum sometime Thursday. It will be a major local attraction, but we need funds to upgrade the old railway station. I've set up a GoFundMe if you care to help or even if you just share. Take a look and read the story below the photo. https://www.gofundme.com/f/93yr8-middleton-railway-museum-b

The Ole Semaphore system is back on the Station in Middleton.....and it’s a beauty.....

This 115-year-old steam locomotive is destined for the Middleton Railway Museum in Middleton. On Dec. 16, 2020 it was lifted from the tracks at the former Upper Clements Park and unto a giant flatbed truck. The 75-ton steam engine is expected to arrive at the museum on Thursday, Dec. 17. The old train will be placed on new rail infrastructure built and donated by CN. The locomotive was donated to the museum by Annapolis County.

Looking West, Middleton Station, July 16, 1989

So many inquiries as to when the steam engine will arrive! A lot of excitement from the general public and museum supporters! To our followers and fans, we will advise everyone when the engine is going to arrive but can't answer every message and post asking when. Sorry! For now consider it TBA (to be announced). Thanks for your support!!

Middleton Railway Museum News Release November 5, 2020, on behalf of the Board of Directors For the many inquiries received through our Facebook group and web site, we wish to update all our museum fans (The DARmy) on the happenings past and present at the museum.... Starting in 2017, the museum started the paperwork process of acquiring the building and property from the Province of Nova Scotia to become a bona-fide museum. This required the facility to be closed while collections were re-organized, displays created and interior space reconfigured with our limited resources. In the process of compliance for the transfer process there was also remediation and consultation for the lands and building that took place throughout 2018 and 2019. On the cusp of reopening in 2020 we were then faced with delays in the transfer of property and COVID19 combined. With a lack of time and resources to prepare and comply with COVID19 requirements in the facility, we elected to keep the doors closed for yet another year. Thankfully this year though we were blessed and were able to use the available time to acquire the legacy CNR 1521 steam engine for static display at the station to bring interest and authenticity to the museum. The once ubiquitous and forever venerable "10 wheeler" will be arriving soon and be placed on rails so generously installed by Canadian National Railways. The "10 wheeler" plied both the Dominion Atlantic and Halifax and South Western Railways that the Middleton Railway station served and will stand as an emotional and educational display for generations who remember and for generations that never knew the days when rails were king in our province. We're looking forward to greeting everyone back in 2021 and will keep our loyal following updated especially about the steam engine move in the months to come. The Board of Directors

Are you ready for this???? We will call this.....The Plan......On Wednesday December 16th the Crane, Trucks and Equipment will arrive at Ole Upper Clements Pa...rk.....on Thursday December 17th the Iron Lady and her Tender will be loaded onto trucks and prepared for transport......on Friday December 18th.....she will be transported to her new forever home built by CN Rail......at the Middleton Railway Musem, Middleton, Nova Scotia. We will call this....The Route To Be Used.....She will be transported Eastward on Hwy 101 to the Petro Can exit at Middleton.....she will travel southward to Avery’s and turn left on to Hwy 1, eastward again to School Street, she will turn left onto School Street to the Middleman Railway Musem for unloading. We will update this site right here as to the time she leaves Ole Upper Clements Park.....of course she will be easily spotted and viewed along the route......and a great place for pictures will be between Petro Can and Avery’s in Middleton..... And we can call this....How You Can Help.....we need people and vehicles to stay away from the corner near the post office in Middleton.....the crane and trucks will need lots of room to make the corner onto School Street......and the next favour......please please keep a safe distance from the crane while it is working and unloading the Iron Lady.....and please maintain a safe distance from each other as per Provincial Guidelines.....masks may need to be worn......and finally.....enjoy the moment......we will be back to update every day till the 115 year old, 4-6-0......Steam Locomotive.....is resting at her new home.

A view of the Sheffield Mills railway station circa 1950’s.

CN Preserving Historic Piece of Canada’s Railway 115-year-old Engine to be Displayed in Middleton, NS MIDDLETON, NS - Dianne Hankinson LeGard, Chair of the Mid...dleton Railway Museum Society, is proud to announce that CN is assisting in the restoration and display of a vintage locomotive in recognition of the rich, century-old, heritage of the railway in the Town of Middleton. Completed by the Locomotive and Machine Company of Montreal in 1905, the 61.1-foot-long engine weighs 274,500 pounds and could carry 10 tons of coal and 5,000 gallons of water. It is quite unusual as it is equipped with a Belpaire firebox, a design usually associated with the Pennsylvania Railroad in the U.S.A. To my knowledge there is no other similarly equipped steam locomotive in Canada, said Bill Linley, chair of the Nova Scotia Railway Heritage Society. CN has offered its services and materials to create new infrastructure capable of supporting the 75-ton locomotive and tender in front of the historic railway station. Construction has already begun. Middleton’s railway history dates back to the 1870s when Nictaux and Atlantic Rail commissioned the line which was later renamed Nova Scotia Central. The line would service the nearby iron mines at Torbrook and the growing agricultural industries of the province for over a century. We view the lines and the station as core to the development of our primary industries and early passenger traffic in central Nova Scotia, said LeGard. CN is extremely pleased to support the effort to bring this rare piece of Canadian railway history back to Middleton, a founding line in our now tri-coastal network which provides essential transportation service to the economy, our customers and to the communities we serve, said Robert Pace, chair of the board of CN. This is the type and size of locomotive that would have run through Middleton to the great Canadian North and to the Pacific Coast the engine was engineered to be a work-horse in the second wave of the industrial revolution. After being sold for preservation, the engine was later acquired by a private owner in Michigan in 1969 and eventually made its way back to Nova Scotia. After being displayed at Upper Clements Park to the delight of thousands of railway enthusiasts, the locomotive will now be proudly displayed in Middleton, NS. We can trace our Province’s integral role in today’s international supply chain back to the innovations and infrastructure put in place over a century ago in Middleton, proclaimed the Honourable Stephen McNeil, Premier of Nova Scotia. CNR 1521 will stand as a reminder of our capacity to innovate and compete in what is becoming a more virtual and global marketplace every day. It is important to reflect on Nova Scotia’s long history as a central figure in the trade and transport of our nation’s natural resources and products, a legacy that continues to this day. The locomotive was donated to the Middleton Railway Museum by the Municipality of the County of Annapolis when some assets of the theme park became surplus. "Municipal councillors voted unanimously to give the train to the museum in Middleton," said Lawrence Powell, the county's information officer. "The feeling was that this iconic engine should remain in the area as an attraction and as a testament to the transportation industry that helped make the Annapolis Valley a thriving and vibrant place." See more

Thanks for all the great videos of the locomotive and your recollections John. Lovin' it.

John MacDonald tells a few stories about trains. About the mystery and romance. About why it's important to get this train from Upper Clements to its new home i...n Middleton at the Middleton Railway Museum. The locomotive and tender were donated by the County of Annapolis. Things are happening. Stay tuned in the next few days. See more

Kingsport Depot, Dominion Atlantic Railway, successor of the Cornwallis Valley Railway formed in 1887 by Canning merchants, bought by the Annapolis Railway, 1892, by the DAR in 1894; active until 1962 and tracks removed 1963. (FHS; date of photo unknown.)

John MacDonald took a walk down the length of the train at Upper Clements Park recently. The plan is to move the 75-ton locomotive to the Middleton Railway Muse...um. Progress on that front is being made and we hope to have some news soon. Meanwhile, John tells us a few things about trains. And Aunt Betty. See more

1905 Steam Locomotive at Upper Clements Park bound for Middleton.

John A. MacDonald talks about the 4-6-0 configuration of the 1905 steam locomotive he's helping bring to the Middleton Railway Museum. Four small wheels at the ...front, six big ones behind them, and the zero means nothing behind the six. All powered by coal and steam. Seventy-five tons. The train sits at Upper Clements Park and was given to the museum by Annapolis County council. See more

Bill Linley is a railway historian and a friend of the Middleton Railway Museum. He's been helping out with the effort to move the steam locomotive at Upper Clements Park to the museum in Middleton.

Veteran railroader and municipal councillor John MacDonald is helping the Middleton Railway Museum procure this 1905 steam locomotive that has been on static display at Upper Clements Park for three decades. Here he talks about the 4-6-0 10-wheeler that weights 75 tons.

You don’t need any train-ing to ride this railway! Experience the age of rail through the lens of Wolfville at Randall House! Ever wonder who the statue of th...at guy is at Waterfront Park? Wonder no longer! Whether you choose to visit him on our Waterfront Walking Tour of Historic Wolfville or just catch the next train to Randall House, we’ve got our Conductors waiting to give you a day like no other! Love Valley apples? Of course, you do! Come see how the age of rail shaped Annapolis Valley’s agricultural landscape! Still not convinced? I do not believe you! Who doesn’t love locomotives? Take the A-Train or the Crazy Train, if you’re feeling it to Randall House Museum today! Open 11am-4pm; Friday-Monday

The aftermath of the train wreck near the Canning School, November 1912. (Photo taken from the Kaye Family collection)

MLW Ten Wheeler....

New Germany RR Station, July 958

H is for Hoop! Before radios, how did you get important operating orders to a train crew rushing by? With a hoop, of course! Skilled operators at railway stati...ons would receive orders in Morse Code sent by telegraph using, transcribe them into words, type or write them on tissue paper orders, and hand them up to the passing train using these wooden hoops, which were caught on the fly by the engine and train crews one set for the engine, one set for the conductor. In our second image, Arvid Johnson (operator) holds a message hoop for an oncoming engine at Albert Canyon Station on June 22 1941.

A 102 years ago today, the tiny village of Kingsport, Nova Scotia had this remarkable level of public transport - eight trains a day! Overnight connections righ...t from the village station to Boston or Montreal! Plus a ferry across the Minas Basin. There is probably no community in Nova Scotia, outside of Halifax, with this level of public transport today. This is a replica station board which I chaulked up with info taken from the 1914 time table of the Dominion Atlantic Railway at the Nova Scotia Archives: https://novascotia.ca/archives/Tourism/archives.asp?ID=362 See more

When In Doubt, written with Jamie Robinson, is now available for digital sale and streaming on all your favourite music platforms. We are living in unprecede...nted times. There is no template for the kind of conditions we are currently living in. Everyone is experiencing a level of fear and anxiety that comes with uncertainty. This song reflects this uncertainty, but also was inspired by the incredible strength and resilience we have seen recently in our communities. Keep your heart wide open and your promise true, together we can make the world a better place. https://open.spotify.com/album/6hMVh2kPEDS4pH3W7bDw5N https://music.apple.com//a/when-in-doubt-single/1515416242 Photo by: Timothy Richard.

DAR YARD ANNAPOLIS ROYAL - This is a copy of a photo taken in the 1960s by Robert Taylor, who was the last station agent at the Annapolis Royal Railway station. Note the freight shed in the background. Does anyone recognize any of the men in the photo?

Thanks everyone for the interest shown in the Crossburn colorized photos. Here are a few more.

A tale of one bridge - we don't have the highest tides on the Bay side of NS but still dramatic differences in tidal levels and the bridge is a good illustration of that. Locals of course know that; just educating the rest of the world.

The Berwick Register - August 30, 2003

To pass some time, here's a few old photos of Digby to look at . . . enjoy.

https://lookaside.fbsbx.com//RUNAWAY%20IN%20THE%20ROCKIES.

The United Fruit Company Aylesford - circa 1920 Exact newspaper date unknown but the scrap book is labeled Berwick Register articles 1987-89

Brookmere earlier today.

...Vintage Valley NS *Photographs, Moments & Memories *Trainspotting Kentville, NS 1958 East & West Views @ the Station & Yards *Low Resolution/Digital Copie...s of Original B&W Negatives ...for the Railfans **Details Attached

Looking for something to do to get out of the snow? We are open Wednesday to Saturday 11-4! Come check out our indoor exhibits!

I remember as a little girl growing up in Middleton I always thought it was huge, with so many stores, restaurants and even a theater. The town had a Stedman's ...Store and oh how I loved at Christmas time going to the Stedmans Toyland looking at all of the toys. The store had an old wooden floor that creaked when you walked and a smell all of its own, the store where wishes and dreams came true for so many of us youngsters who entered its doors. Ditmars was the music store where I bought my first Monkees album, Hoopers jewellry store where I got my first watch, Andrew Furniture Store, Armstrongs shoe store where I went shopping for the first time on my own and bought a pair of white sandals. The town also had The Shaker where the school kids gathered at lunch time for fries and Coke and Eisnor's for those who had a bit more money to spend. Moshers Hardware store close to the Fire Hall, MacMurtry's Hardware in the center of town, the IGA on commercial street, the Bank of Nova Scotia and the Royal right on Main Street and the Capitol Theater where I spent many, many happy Saturday afternoons dreaming the day away. A drugstore, hairdressing shop, a fabric store in this family friendly Father Knows Best kind of town. Times have changed, the town has changed but the memories will remain for those of us who grew up in the 50's and 60's. https\://novascotia.ca/archives/communityalbums/middleton/results.asp?Search= http://novamuse.ca/Search/objects

For Historic Places Day we are showcasing the Wolfville Railway Station, which was part of the Dominion Atlantic Railway. While trains are no longer in use this... historic building is now Wolfville’s local library. Come to the museum to learn more about how Wolfville has changed throughout the years! http://novamuse.ca/Detail/objects/14348 #doitinwolfville #historicplacesday #doitinwolfville #railway #dominionatlanticrailway See more

THIS SHOULD SPARK A FEW MEMORIES - Remember when it was so easy to hop on the Dayliner for a trip to Halifax or some place in between? Photo probably from late 1970s. (From the AHS Archives Collection)

Flying Bluenose Cornwallis Valley, near Kentville, NS 1910

CONSTRUCTION OF IRON ORE LOADING FACILITY AT PORT WADE in 1910. For only about three years as it turned out, iron ore from iron mines in Torbrook, Annapolis Co...unty, was shipped via the Halifax & South Western Railway (owned by CN Rail) to the pier at Port Wade, where it was loaded on steamers for shipment. The pier was lengthened and widened and a loading facility was built at its end. For a time three trainloads a day delivered ore to waiting ships. The ore loading facility was torn down in 1927, but the pier remained in use for many years. Before the H&SW Ry bought the railway line in 1906 it was called the Middleton & Victoria Beach Railway, although it only went as far as Port Wade. From Middleton to Bridgetown, the line ran nearly parallel to the DAR line, then the DAR line crossed the Annapolis River near Bridgetown and continued west on the south side of the river. The H&SW Ry line continued to be used to haul freight; passenger service operated on Mondays and Fridays, with railway stations in Granville Ferry and Port Wade, and flag stops at Granville Centre and Karsdale. Belleisle applied for a station of its own at one point. Service west of Bridgetown ceased about 1928. The Granville Ferry station stood about where the Champlain Elementary School sits today. Does anyone have a photo of either the Granville Ferry or the Port Wade station? See more

The Flying Bluenose dining car. Now that's a train travelling in style.

SS Empress Canadian Pacific Railway St. John To Digby Service http://www.annapolis-valley-vacation.com/

Avon Bridges at Low Tide, Windsor, NS http://www.annapolis-valley-vacation.com/

C.P.S.S. Princess Helene Docking at Digby, NS http://www.annapolis-valley-vacation.com/

Arrival of the Flying Bluenose, Digby, NS 1910 http://www.annapolis-valley-vacation.com/

Bridge Bear River 1906 http://www.annapolis-valley-vacation.com/

Train Station, Annapolis Royal http://www.annapolis-valley-vacation.com/

D.A.R. Station, Digby, Nova Scotia http://www.annapolis-valley-vacation.com/

D.A.R. Kentville NS (Dominion Atlantic Railway) http://www.annapolis-valley-vacation.com/