1890s Hamilton

As was the custom of the day, the promoters of the Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway demanded financial assistance from municipalities along the proposed route. Hamilton City Council agreed that the building of a second major railway line into and through the city would be ultimately beneficial economically and agreed to provide $250,000 to the T.H.&B. upon completion of the line. The terms of the bonus agreement were straightforward. The T.H.&B. railway, as regards freight and passenger service in and out of Hamilton had to be completed by December 31, 1895. The decided upon route through the city involved one major matter, the creation of a tunnel underneath Hunter Street West between Charles and Queen Street. Throughout the latter part of 1895, progress on the T.H.&B. tunnel had been hampered by many difficulties. The weather itself had been a major problem as ongoing rainy weather had led to walls of the tunnel collapsing and having to be rebuilt. For weeks,...

    On Saturday, December 17, 1898, during the early evening hours, there was a lot of excitement on Wentworth Street North as a major fire broke out at the Hamilton & Toronto Sewer Pipe Works. The Times coverage of the fire, including an on-the-scene drawing by Times Artist J. Thompson, follow: “In the matter of fires the Hamilton & Toronto Sewer Pipe Company is very unfortunate. The company had another big loss by fire on Saturday evening, when its works on Wentworth street, near the G.T.R. were gutted, the damage to the building, stock and machinery amounting to over $15,000. “About 7 o’clock, a young son of Peter Thompson, Wentworth street, saw that the place was on fire. He ran to the nearest telephone, but was unable to communicate with the firemen, all the wires being down in that vicinity. The little fellow ran hard to the nearest fire alarm box which was in order, at the corner of Emerald and Cannon streets, and there turned in an alarm. The drivers of...

  It was definitely a snow event, for Hamiltonians to long remember. The churchgoers for Sunday evening services arrived at their various services, most walking from their nearby homes. By the time it was time to go home, a cold but damp rain was falling lightly. Within hours a cold front had moved in which froze the moisture on the many, many wires and poles froze. An increasingly heavy snowfall layered on top of the sagging wires. During the services at two downtown churches such at Centenary Methodist and the Central Presbyterian Churches, the electricity cut out plunging the sanctuaries into darkness … briefly. In 1898, there were two companies providing electricity in Hamilton, and there was still gas available for homes and businesses which had not converted : “Users of electricity for lighting purposes were suddenly and unceremoniously apprised of the bad effects of the storm by the shutting off of the electric current early in the evening. The Cataract Power Com...

    “Hamilton now has the handsomest and best-appointed photographic studio in the Dominion of Canada, thanks to the expertise of C.S. Cochrane. It is located at 3 James Street North, and yesterday afternoon and evening was the most visited place on the city.” Hamilton Spectator. November 2, 1898 After nearly ten years at 116 King Street East, corner of King and Mary streets, Mr. C.S. Cochrane decided to relocate his photographic studio and retail outlet. “Mr. Cochrane, noted as one of Canada’s finest photographers, felt the need to expand his operations, and he secured the upper floors of a building located at the northwest corner of King and James streets in the heart of downtown Hamilton. “On November 1, 1898, the new Cochrane studios were formally opened. Over 2,000 people responded to Mr. Cochrane’s invitation to inspect his new premises. Anderson’s orchestra was hired for the occasion, and from two until six p.m., the musicians entertained visitors looking ov...