List of defunct Canadian railways explained

Most transportation historians date the history of Canada's railways as beginning on February 25, 1832, with the incorporation of British North America's first steam-powered railway, the Champlain and St. Lawrence Railroad (C&SL). This line opened for traffic on July 21, 1836, although there are cases of animal-drawn mining tramways in Nova Scotia from the 18th century onward.

Thousands of railways followed the C&SL and were given a charter by the federal or provincial governments, although in most cases these charters never resulted in an actual line being constructed. Many of these charters were so-called "paper railways" and were absorbed into other railways, that is they existed on paper with the actual trains bearing the name of another railway or system of railways. For example, Canadian National Railways alone consisted of over some 400 railways (see List of Canadian National Railways companies).

The reason for these "paper" railways was the ease of getting a charter. This was often done by a major railway such as Canadian Pacific Railway or Grand Trunk Railway, but the true interests were kept hidden to keep attention away from the efforts of competing major railways to gain access to another's territory. In other instances local interests wanted a railway to connect their community with the main line of a major railway that did not enter their town, or to connect to another major railway for competitive reasons, to get lower freight rates, something that remains to this day. In many cases these local efforts were quickly taken over by a major railway to both expand its own network and to deny its competition access to traffic.

Streetcar and interurban railways were chartered provincially, in the case of Ontario under the Street Railway Act.

Railways that were not common carriers did not require a charter under the Railway Act since they were used primarily for the owners' own purposes, mainly logging and mining.

American railroads always operated in Canada under charters of subsidiary railways even though most had equipment lettered only for the parent company. Most U.S. railroads also operated in Canada through subsidiary railways with one exception: Wabash Railway which had not a mile of track in Canada as it crossed southern Ontario using trackage rights granted by the Grand Trunk Railway of Canada. These rights still exist with present-day Canadian National and Norfolk Southern, which runs into Windsor and Sarnia, Ontario. It formerly ran through Montreal, Quebec, but service was stopped due to such services causing traffic congestion.

This list of defunct railways includes only those railways that actually came into existence. Many were taken over by other railways or had a name change and thus continued to operate trains over the same tracks. A few ceased to exist because they went out of business and were abandoned and dismantled.

For simplicity on this list, Canadian National Railways (CNR) (pre-1960), Canadian National Railway (CN) (post-1960), Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), Grand Trunk Railway (GTR), and Canadian Northern Railway (CNoR) will be abbreviated for notations. Others will be abbreviated as required.

Also consult the list of active Canadian railways.

A

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
			Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by NAR.
	Pictou County, Nova Scotia	1829-c.1890	First railway and first use of metal rails in British North America; horse-drawn until 1838. Abandoned.
		1899–1995	Acquired by WC.
	Algoma and Sudbury Districts, Northeastern Ontario	1911–30	Acquired by CPR on July 14, 1931 by 999-year lease.
		1912-37	Merged into RS.
	southeastern Quebec, central Maine		Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by CNR.

B

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
	southeastern Ontario		Acquired by CNoR.
	Kitchener and Waterloo, Ontario	1889–1919	Continued operations and renamed to Kitchener and Waterloo Street Railway.
	central Newfoundland	?-1956	Subsidiary of AND. Sold to become GFC.
			Owned by BCH. Sold to become SRY.
	British Columbia	1972–2004	Acquired by CN.
	eastern Ontario		Acquired by CPR.
	eastern Ontario		Acquired by CNoR.
	central Newfoundland		Owned by ASARCO. Abandoned.
	southeastern New Brunswick		Acquired by CNR.
	central Manitoba	1971–1999	Subsidiary of BN. Renamed to BNSFM.
	eastern Ontario	1854–1884	Leased by CPR for 999 years. Abandoned in 1995.

C

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
	eastern Quebec	?-1975	Acquired by CN.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Subsidiary of GWR.
	central, eastern Ontario, western Quebec	1890–1914	Acquired by GTR.
	Quebec via Maine to New Brunswick	1988–1994	Part of CPR mainline east of Lac-Mégantic, divested 1994 as Canadian American Railroad (bankrupt 2001) and later MM&A (bankrupt 2013). Portion east of Brownville is Irving's New Brunswick Southern Railway.
	Quebec to Maine	1994–2002	Iron Road Railways segment of CP's former Canadian Atlantic Railway from Lennoxville to Brownville, Maine, bankrupt 2001.
	British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec	1881–2023	Acquired and Merged with the Kansas City Southern Railroad to form CPKC.
			Acquired by Canadian Pacific.
	northwestern Nova Scotia	1905–1906	Sold to become MCR&PC.
	northwestern Nova Scotia	1892–1905	Sold to become CC&RC.
			Acquired by MCRR, later NYC. Sold to CPR and CN. Abandoned.
	eastern Quebec, Maine, western New Brunswick, western Nova Scotia	1988–1994	CPR subsidiary created to operate lines east of Montreal including DAR. Portions abandoned or sold by 1994 to NBSR, EMR, CDAC, and WHRC.
	Maritimes, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba	1915–1918	Entrusted to CNR. Corporate entity sold to CN in 1993 for $1.
			Division of CNR.
			Division of CPR.
	Nova Scotia, Quebec to British Columbia	1899–1918	Nationalized into CNR.
			Constituent company of CNoR.
			Constituent company of CNoR.
			Constituent company of CNoR.
			Constituent company of CNoR.
			Constituent company of CNoR.
			Constituent company of CNoR.
			Constituent company of CNoR.
			Constituent company of CNoR.
			Constituent company of CNoR.
			Constituent company of CNoR.
			Sold to SCR.
	Stellarton to Sydney, NS	1890	Constituent part of IRC
	northeastern New Brunswick		Acquired by CNR.
Central Maine and Quebec Railway	Quebec, Maine, Vermont	2014-2020	Acquired by Canadian Pacific Railway
			Acquired by CNoR.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Also a defunct U.S. railroad. Subsidiary of GTR, later CNR. Became NECR.
	southwestern Quebec	1836–1857	First common carrier railway in British North America. Acquired by M&CR.
			Interurban railway.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by CPR.
	Kentville to Kingsport, NS	1890-1892	Acquired by W&AR.
	Toronto to St. Thomas, ON		Acquired by CPR.
	Springhill Junction to Parrsboro, NS	1883-1962	Abandoned.

D

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
			Subsidiary of CASO/MCRR.
	Cape Breton, NS	1968-2001	Former DOSCO coal hauler, assets acquired by Sydney Coal Railway
	western Nova Scotia	1894–1994	Acquired by CPR in 1912, after 1988 was operated as part of CAR. Sold to become WHRC.
	Laurentian Mountains (Western Quebec) Kilmar, Black Lake, Lachute, Marlean	1916-1981	Subsidiary of CRL.
	Minnesota to Winnipeg Manitoba / Port Arthur ON		Originally a CNoR railway by the name of Duluth, Rainy Lake and Winnipeg Railway. Now a subsidiary of CN - by way of GT and then merged with WC (both are CN companies).^[1]

E

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
			Acquired by NAR.
			Acquired by CNoR.
	central New Brunswick		Acquired by CGR.
Erie and Ontario Railway			Acquired by CASO.
			Acquired by CPR. Sold 2006 to become Southern Railway of Vancouver Island.
	southern New Brunswick	1857–1872	Eastern extension merged into IRC. Western extension became part of NBR.
	Northern Vancouver Island	1917-2017	Sold to Western Forest Products 2006.

G

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
	Cambridge, Ontario	1894–1908	Renamed the Galt, Preston, and Hespeler Street Railway after Hespeler line was built.
	Cambridge, Ontario	1894–1908	Merged into the Berlin, Waterloo, Wellesley, and Lake Huron Railway.
			Acquired by CPR.
	central Newfoundland	1956–1977	Abandoned.
	Waterloo Region, Ontario	1914–1931	Acquired by CPR, merged into CPEL.
	Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia	1914–1920	Nationalized into CNR.
	Ontario, Quebec, New England	1852–1923	Nationalized into CNR.
			Acquired by CPR.
			A trans U.S. railway that had a railway in the BC Fraser Valley competing with CP for the natural resources.
Great Northern Railway of Canada^[2]		1892-1907	between Rivière-à-Pierre, Quebec, and Hawkesbury, Ontario^[3]
	southwestern Ontario	1853–1884	Acquired by GTR
			Acquired by CPR.
Gunflint and Lake Superior Railroad	Lakehead Region (Ontario and Minnesota)	1902–1909

H

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
	southwestern Nova Scotia	1901–1918	Merged into CNoR, nationalized by CNR.
	Halifax, Nova Scotia	1866-1876	Horse-drawn operations; assets acquired by Halifax Street Railway Company, 1886.
	Halifax, Nova Scotia	1895-1917	Acquired by Nova Scotia Tramways and Power Company, Limited in 1917.
	Halifax, Nova Scotia	1886-1895	Became Nova Scotia Power Company in 1889.
	Hamilton-Niagara Peninsula, Ontario	1894 - 1931	interurban railway.
			Acquired by GTR.
	central Newfoundland
			Charter acquired by CNoR, subsequently built by CNR.
			Portage railway.

I

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
			Acquired by CNoR.
	Quebec City to Halifax	1872-1918	Operated by CGR, entrusted to CNR.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by CNoR.

K

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
	Kaslo BC to Slocan BC, Central Kootenay Region	1895-1955	Acquired by CPR.
	Okanagan Valley, British Columbia	1999 - 2013	Entered receivership July 2013. CN once again operates a portion of the line. The Vernon to Kelowna portion is under abandonment procedures.
	Midway BC to Hope BC, Southern Interior Route	1915–1961, all except Penticton area until 1989	Acquired by CPR.
		1884-1913	Acquired by CPR, dismantled 1950s.
	Kitchener and Waterloo, Ontario	1919–1927	Continuation of Berlin and Waterloo Street Railway. Taken over and municipalized by the City of Kitchener under its Public Utilities Commission.

L

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
		1879–1880	Leased to the South Eastern Railway 1880. Acquired by CPR 1887.
			Subsidiary of PM, later C&O. Abandoned.
			Acquired by CPR, merged into CPEL.
			Acquired by CNoR.
			Lower Laurentian acquired by Great Northern of Canada, later by CNoR.
			Acquired by CPR by 999-year lease.
	Southwestern Ontario	1909–1918	Abandoned - Formerly South Western Traction Company.
	southwestern Ontario	1853–1965	Acquired by CN.
	Saint-Jean-Deschaillons, Sainte-Philomène and Lyster (Mégantic)	1889-1909	Merged to Quebec Railway, Light, Heat and Power Co (QRLHP),^[4] acquired by CGR.

M

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
	southwestern New Brunswick		Sold and renamed GRS/ST.
			Subsidiary of GN.
			Acquired by CPR.
	Northeastern Ontario		Reorganized as Algoma Eastern Railway, subsequently largely abandoned.
	northwestern Nova Scotia	1906–1961	Abandoned.
	Eastern Townships of Quebec	1870-1990	Leased by Quebec Central Railway (CPR) 1926–1990, abandoned, tracks removed 1992.
			Operated in Canada as CASO.
			Acquired by GTR.
	Hants County NS	1901-1905	Acquired by DAR.
			Subsidiary of GN.
Millertown Railway^[5] ^[6]			Subsidiary of AND. Abandoned.
		1857–1872	Acquired by GTR.
			Acquired by CPR. CP operates to Rigaud, line from Rigaud to Ottawa abandoned and sold to Via Rail.
			Acquired by CNR.
		2003-2013	Sold in bankruptcy to Fortress Investments as Central Maine and Quebec Railway
			Owned Dominion Park
			Subsidiary of CPCC.

N

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
			Acquired by CPR.
	Rouses Point, NY to Delson Jct. QC		Subsidiary of DH.
	Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick	1912–1918	Operated by CGR, entrusted to CNR.
	Troup BC to Ft Sheppard BC	1893-1993	Acquired by GN Fruitvale to US border still in use for Atco Forest Products.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by CGR.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Subsidiary of GN.
	Newfoundland	1892–1949	Entrusted to CNR.
	Newfoundland		Acquired by NR.
			Acquired by CNR, merged into CNEL.
	Spences Bridge BC to Nicola BC	1907–1989	Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by CPR.
	northern Alberta	1929–1981	Acquired by CNR.
			Subsidiary of NP.
			Acquired by GTR.
			Abandoned.
			Acquired by CNoR.
			Acquired by H&SW
	central Nova Scotia	1853–1867	Merged into IRC.
	Halifax, Nova Scotia	1917-1928	Became Nova Scotia Light and Power Company, Limited, 1928
	Halifax, Nova Scotia	1928-1949	Rail operations ceased 1949; converted to electric trolley coaches

O

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
Orangeville Brampton Railway	Orangeville To Brampton, Ontario	2000-2021
	Okanagan Valley, British Columbia	1998 - 2009	Shut down due to lack of business.
			Acquired by CPR.
	Rainy River, Ontario	1886 – 1900	Acquired by CNoR.
	eastern Ontario	1996–2001	Acquired by OCR.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by CNR.
	Eastern Ontario	1898–1957	Subsidiary of NYC.
			Acquired by CAR.
			Acquired by CPR.

P

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
	British Columbia	1913–1972	Renamed BCR.
	Ontario	1887–1892	Acquired by OA&PS.
	Quebec	1880–1903	Merged with Ottawa Northern and Western Railway.
	Ontario	1889–1938	Abandoned
	Waterloo Region, Ontario	1857	Short-lived line connecting the city of Berlin (Kitchener) to the town of Preston. Line was later sold to GTR and became part of the Galt Subdivision.
	Prince Edward Island	1871–1918	Operated by CGR, entrusted to CNR.

Q

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
	Regina to Prince Albert	1885–1906	Acquired by CNoR.
	Quebec to Roberval	1880–1906	Acquired by CNoR.
			Acquired by CNR.
	Eastern Townships and Beauce		Acquired by CPR 1911. Dormant 1994–2000, and again from 2006.
			Subsidiary of DH, acquired by CN.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by CNR.
	Quebec-La Malbaie		Acquired by CNR.

R

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
	Rossland to Paterson BC	1897–1921	Subsidiary of Great Northern Railway. Also named Columbia and Red Mountain Railway in Washington State.
			Subsidiary of RUT. Abandoned.

S

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
Shaw Logging Railroad	Prairie River, SK area	1907-1917
			Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by CNR.
	southwestern Quebec	1853-1853	Acquired by GTR.
	Ontario, Quebec, New England	1996–2001	Subsidiary of CPR created to operate lines in eastern North America. Merged back into parent company.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Subsidiary of SFPPC.
			Acquired by CPR.
	Ontario	1902–1908	Became London and Lake Erie Railway and Transportation Company.
	Greater Sudbury, Ontario	1915–50	Converted to bus operations.
	Cape Breton Island	1895–1966	Acquired by DEVCO, line to Louisbourg is now defunct.

T

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
	eastern Quebec, northwestern New Brunswick	1870–1949	Acquired by CNR.
	Newfoundland	1977–1988	Division of CN. Abandoned.
	Eastern Ontario	1884–1958	Acquired by GTR.
		1927–1986	Subsidiary of SC.
	Northeastern Ontario	1902–1946	Renamed to ONR.
	Southwestern Ontario	1896-1958	Acquired by CPR in 1904 and entity ceased to exist by 1958.
	South-west Ontario	1871–1883	Acquired by O&Q.
	south-central Ontario	1871–1883	Amalgamated into Midland Railway of Canada.
	southwestern Ontario	1892–1987	Acquired by CPR.
	Southwestern Ontario, Southern-Ontario	1891–1931	Acquired by CNoR.

V

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
			Acquired by Canadian Pacific subsequently leased to British Columbia Electric Railway.
			ran from New Westminster to Vancouver along the Brunette and Still Creeks on modern CN alignment. Owned by lumberman John Hendry, it wanted to bridge the Second Narrows and go north.
			Subsidiary of Great Northern Railway. Known as "the Cordwood Limited"
			later acquired by the Great Northern Railway

W

Railway name	Locale	Operating years	Comments
			Operated over running rights on CAL, later CN. WAB merged into NW, later NS.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Acquired by CPR.
			Merged with W&A into DAR.
		opened August 18, 1869	Merged with WCR into DAR.
Windsor and Hantsport Railway	Nova Scotia	1994 to 2011
		formed 1889, charter issued March 31, 1890	Operated in Winnipeg's Exchange District. In 1987 City of Winnipeg acquired spur lines in Exchange District to convert to roads.^[7] ^[8]

See also

• List of Canadian railways
• History of rail transport in Canada

References

1. Web site: CN merges three US subsidiaries .
2. Book: Hinshelwood. N. M.. Amidst the Laurentians. 1902. The Herald Press. Montréal, Canada. 2016-11-21.
3. Web site: Great Northern Railway of Canada .
4. Web site: Bilan du siècle - Création de la Quebec Railway, Light, Heat and Power Co .
5. Web site: Millertown Railway photo.
6. Web site: Old Time Trains. www.trainweb.org.
7. Web site: Manitoba Laws .
8. Web site: 145 Market Avenue . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20220210092748/https://www.winnipeg.ca/ppd/Documents/Heritage/ListHistoricalResources/Market-145-long.pdf . February 10, 2022.

• Dorman, Robert: A Statutory History of the Steam and Electric Railways of Canada 1836-1937 Department of Transport, Canada
• Dorman, Robert: Appendix to above including addition of maps.
• Dorman, Robert; D.E.Stoltz: A Statutory History of Railways in Canada 1836-1986
• Churcher, Colin; Old Time Trains. Old Time Trains
• Smith, Ivan (1998), Significant Dates in Nova Scotia's Railway History (1850- 1899). Retrieved August 16, 2005.