Duel gauge rail on the riverfronts?

Railfans...can you answer this?

I found this picture ages ago online and always wondered if there was a difference in the gauge between Canada and the States in the late 19th C. Or at least Ont. and Mich.

This is what would have been the GTR yard in Windsor....say 1890? Notice the third rail.


Attachment 9680

Who did they change cars with in Detroit with a different gauge? Was there a facility over there/over here to change the wheel sets? And which side had the larger of the two gauges? When did it end? 1900?


And just a side note......the "tall" building on the left is Windsor's Town Hall, which was right here:

http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&q=w...137.94,,0,5.46

Just to the west of the Casino. There is a plaque you can see on the lawn of the apartment building marking the site.


Thanks!

Canada's railways were built in a broad gauge [[5 ft 6 in), they started converting to the US standard gauge in the 1870s to allow easy interchange.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rail_gauge_in_Canada

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Originally Posted by Hornwrecker

Canada's railways were built in a broad gauge [[5 ft 6 in), they started converting to the US standard gauge in the 1870s to allow easy interchange.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rail_gauge_in_Canada

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The most common gauge in early US railroading was 5'0". US railroads were a mix of 5'0" and 4'8-1/2" until they decided to standardize on the British standard of 4'8-1/2".

The US also had a lot of 3'0" and 2'0" gauge lines. The railroad pioneers did not at first envision interchange of cars and did not worry to what gauge the next guy was building his railroad. the cost of labor for transhipment was pretty small in those days.

Wow. I have never seen a picture of dual-guage track in the Detroit area. I dimly recall reading that the Detroit - Port Huron Line was built at 5'0". If I had to guess, I'd say that the picture shows a mix of 5"0" and 5'6" but it could also be standard guage and 5'0". The locomotive looks a lot like one in a picture taken at Mt. Clemens in the 1850's, an 0-8-0. I suspect this picture is no newer than 1870, possibly older.

Five-foot-guage track was the standard in the South before the 1870's, but pretty rare in the north.

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Originally Posted by Sandhouse

Wow. I have never seen a picture of dual-guage track in the Detroit area. I dimly recall reading that the Detroit - Port Huron Line was built at 5'0". If I had to guess, I'd say that the picture shows a mix of 5"0" and 5'6" but it could also be standard guage and 5'0". The locomotive looks a lot like one in a picture taken at Mt. Clemens in the 1850's, an 0-8-0. I suspect this picture is no newer than 1870, possibly older.

Five-foot-guage track was the standard in the South before the 1870's, but pretty rare in the north.

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The Pere Marquette lines in the Thumb were originally built as 3'0" gauge lines by smaller companies and later absorbed in the PM.

I prefer Lionel "O" gauge, thank you. :)

Thanks for bringing this up Magna, this is something I had never heard of.

I guess you meant dual as in two rather than duel as in fighting it out? Although maybe there was a duel over gauge widths after all.

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Originally Posted by Hermod

The Pere Marquette lines in the Thumb were originally built as 3'0" gauge lines by smaller companies and later absorbed in the PM.

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Apparently all converted to std gauge by 1900, except [[Port Huron through Memphis to Almont) according to the following link [[with said route in green on map):

http://www.pmhistsoc.org/narrow.shtml

When I lived in the Thumb, PM was still operating as C&O. Years ago, my uncle got me a ride in the caboose. Wow, what a thrill for this country kid!!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Meddle

I guess you meant dual as in two rather than duel as in fighting it out? Although maybe there was a duel over gauge widths after all.

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LOL! uh........yeah, that's what I ment. .:p

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Sandhouse

Wow. I have never seen a picture of dual-guage track in the Detroit area. I dimly recall reading that the Detroit - Port Huron Line was built at 5'0". If I had to guess, I'd say that the picture shows a mix of 5"0" and 5'6" but it could also be standard guage and 5'0". The locomotive looks a lot like one in a picture taken at Mt. Clemens in the 1850's, an 0-8-0. I suspect this picture is no newer than 1870, possibly older.

Five-foot-guage track was the standard in the South before the 1870's, but pretty rare in the north.

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I think you're right Sandhouse.

In the photo I posted I pointed out the Town Hall seen here:
Attachment 9710

Was built in 1856. But the image in the link below is given the year 1866...no third rail

http://www.vintageobscura.com/2010/n...-1866-FULL.jpg