Grab an older map of Essex County, and in the area of Walker and Provincial, you will see a dot on the map named “Pelton”. There never was actually a community around the spot on the map, but there was a rail line junction with a control tower, more of a rail junction, there is still a bit of history behind it.
When Bernie was going through his slides, looking for riverfront photos for us, he found a bunch from Pelton that he pulled and had John scan as well.
A Google Earth view of the location of the Pelton Spur.
Photo © Bernie Drouillard
A crop shot of the Pelton tower. This photo was taken January 22, 1989, and at this point you can see the tower is boarded up and no longer in use. The Pelton tower along the Canada Southern Rail Line bit the dust November 29, 1991.
Photo © Bernie Drouillard
Photo Taken June 22, 1980
Photo © Bernie Drouillard
Photo Taken August 21, 1988
Photo © Bernie Drouillard
Photo Taken January 22, 1989
Photo © Bernie Drouillard
Photo Taken May 21, 1989
Photo © Bernie Drouillard
Photo Taken February 25, 1991
Here is a great photo of the Pelton tower. A big thank you to Geoff Elliott for the permission to repost his photos here.
A case of being in the right place, at the right time, Geoff was down at the Pelton spur in November, 1991, the day the tower came down.
Looks to me like the building eater, made very quick work of this old relic.
A few years ago, I paid a visit to Pelton to see if there was anything there. I noticed the Pelton name on the CN machinery boxes in the area.
I’m sure the area used to be much busier than it is today. Today, outlines can be seen where the rails used to run.
I believe that this is near where the tower stood.
A slab of rail laying around on site, reveals that it was forged by Algoma in the 1940’s (the last number is cut off)
A look up at one of the old telephone poles, also speaks volumes about how busy the corridor used to be. Look at all the insulators, each one would have carried a separate, power, phone or telegraph line..
An abandoned hut along the tracks, south of the 401 overpass.
I’m not sure what the site looks like now, since these photos were taken, they did some work on the gas lines in the area after these photos were taken, plus the 401 widening have been staging in there.
I willing to bet the remaining traces of the area, are probably now wiped out.
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To the site owner
I came across this site looking up my family's name on Google very interesting
Jason R. Pelton
P.S I am also a railfan especially CN
*BUMP* old post, i know BUT i just wanted to mention something about Pelton. way up at the top John had said "Yes the WE&LS RR map shows a Pelton stop, and I’m not totally convinced there was not some kind of farming enclave, hamlet, or settlement of some sort, however small, in that vicinity, that comprised “Pelton” – not just the tower – if one goes back far enough"
looking at this post here about Lukerville: http://internationalmetropolis.com/?p=401
there is a map that shows a spot for Pelton, and a little further north where baseline meets 42, there is North Pelton. So...I guess I just wanted to say maybe John is right.....that it wasn't just named for the tower lol could warrant to further investigation????
oh also....it shows that CN railline behind Jefferson at an Essex terminal branch. I assume it's a typo but....maybe someone out there knows different????
anyways...that's it.
The old map showing the line behind Jefferson, does not show Jefferson or the Y with CN mainline, now Via. Does anyone know if it was once E T , or always C N?
As far as I know it was always CN and existed long before Ford built on their Tecumseh Road properties. I believe CN built this line to get access to the Chrysler operations and possibly interchange with CP. The Y has existed since at least the 50s and appears on maps of that era.
Then again, it is possible that ETR ran alongside CN mainline and once operated this line... a mystery worthy of investigation. As cited previously, the map indicates it was ETR...
Found this by a google search
"Pelton was the junction between the Canada Southern (CASO) and the Lake Erie and Detroit Railway (LE&DR). The LE&DR was the railway built by Hirem Walker, which started in Walkerville, and paralleled Walker Road all the way out to Harrow, curved sharply, and went out to Kingsville, Leamington, Wheatley, Blenheim, and eventually ended in St. Thomas. Over the years it was owned by several railways that all were absorbed by various mergers/buyouts (Pere Marquette, C&O, CSX). This railway was torn up around 1994, but 2 small segments of it still exist. (From approximately EC Row to Pelton), as well as a small segment in Blenheim that serves as an industrial spur."
From what I have been able to determine thus far ETR did not extend East of Pillette. At http://www.etr.ca/hisdet.html (a very good reference for the history of ETR) there is mention of CN Chrysler spur which is the line running east of Jefferson Ave.
Shawn that artifical lake near 401 in the 70's and 80's was called Horseshoe Pond by the people I knew, we used to ride out there as kids and fish and have a bonfire. I had completely forgotten until I saw your post.
We used to walk along the railroad tracks off North Talbot Road just south of Walker Road, near the drive-in, and there was what we thought was an old quarry: this was in the fifties. We called it "The Great Spring Canyon," and repeated stories that kids had drowned there to keep our little brothers from swimming. The sides were very steep like an old quarry, and the water seemed to be deep. It was one of our favourite destinations! In recent years, when I get back to Windsor, I have always tried to see it from the 401, but with all the construction, I have not been able to see it lately.
This brought back some great memories! Maybe we got the name "Spring" from some true fact!
Hi JH from atlanta you can't see the old lake anymore because they filled it in a few years back that are sure has changed since we we kids going their to swim the two long peninsulas that jutted out into the watwr the one farther south was known as pecker's point lol