We lost something very special when we shut down rural train lines.
I was reminded of that on my recent visit to the pretty little town of Hanstport, on the Bay of Fundy.
While old churches and cemeteries warm my heart with their beauty and purpose, abandoned train stations bring on a melancholy sadness for times past, when life was slower and the train stopped in all the little towns. Not only does it not stop now, it doesn't even pass nearby. And when a train is seen, following the super highway like a shadow, it carries goods and rarely people. And when it does carry people, it zooms along, stopping only in the largest centres, ignoring the little hamlets whose lives once revolved around its schedule.
I peer into the window of Hanstport's abandoned train station, and wonder: when was the last day they worked here ? Did they leave at the end of that day, thinking they would return the next ?
The desk looks as if they just stepped away for a moment. The phone sits ready to ring. A fax on top of the in-box says it's 2008. The clock on the wall keeps time but no one glances up to see how soon they can knock off for the day.
On the sidings, trains sit parked. When did parked become abandoned ? When did the shunting area become a meadow ?
Once upon a time, not very long ago, The Windsor & Hantsport Railway Company, provided scenic excursions for tourists and locals, looking for a pleasant way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Every Sunday during the summer, the Evangeline Express ran a 3-4 hour round-trip excursion between Windsor and Wolfville. The tourist train consisted of two open air cars and one air conditioned coach car. Along the way the car attendants would point out areas of interest and historical facts.
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| image from: http://home.cogeco.ca/~yardlimit/grizzz/index.html |
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| image from: http://home.cogeco.ca/~yardlimit/grizzz/index.html |
Sadly, my explorations found the ruins of the Evangeline Express, and the "modern, air-conditioned coach car" wasting away on abandoned sidings.
"The Slow Train" is an enchanting song by the duo, Flanders & Swann, that laments the passing of way of life due to closure of British train lines in the early 1960's. This song was rolling around in my head as I posted these images.
No more will I go to Blandford Forum and Mortiehow,
On the slow train from Midsummer Norton and Mumby Row,
No churns, no porter,
No cat on a seat,
At Chorlton-cum-Hardy and Chester-le-Street
We won't be meeting again on the slow train.
I'll travel no more from Littleton Badsey to Openshaw,
At Long Stanton I'll stand well clear of the doors no more,
No whitewashed pebbles,
No up and no down,
From Thornby Four Crosses to Dunstable Town,
I won't be going again on the slow train.
On the main line and the goods siding,
The grass grows high,
At Dog Dyke, Tumby Woodside, and Troublehouse Halt.
The sleepers sleep at Audlem and Ambergate,
No passenger waits on Chittening platform of Cheslyn Hay,
No-one departs, no-one arrives,
From Selby to Goole,
From St. Erth to St. Ives,
They all passed out of our lives,
On the slow train,
On the slow train.
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