The John Street Roundhouse
You are now standing in the middle of what was once the Toronto Locomotive and Car Facilities of the Canadian Pacific Railway. These facilities were built in 1929 to service the 75 CPR passenger trains a day that utilized the new Union Station. Railroaders called this complex John Street, after the thoroughfare that once extended south of the tracks over a bridge. In its prime, John Street included 43 structures, several kilometres of track and 6.5 ha of property that stretched as far as Bay Street. The facilities were busiest during the 1940s and 50s, until the CPR replaced steam locomotives with diesels, a process that was complete by 1960. John Street continued to service passenger cars and diesel locomotives until 1982. In 1988 the roundhouse was closed and turned over to the City of Toronto for redevelopment as the Toronto Railway Heritage Centre. A series of interpretive plaques explaining the history of this unique National Historic Site will guide you through Roundhouse Park and help you appreciate Toronto's fascinating railway heritage.
Plaque via Alan L. Brown's site Toronto Plaques. Full page here.