Snow storms back in 1877

The Advance of Feb. 15th, 1877, gives an account of the difficulties encountered by the Northern Railway in keeping trains moving:

On Thursday the regular Muskoka Mail left Allandale at 11 o'clock. The line was known to be badly blocked with drifts and a gang of twenty shovellers were taken on board to cl'ar de track. The train consisted of four cars—three passenger and one cattle—it had two engines attached, Nos. 4 and 11, the leading one being in the hands of engine driver Fennell and stoker Gardner. All went well with the train will within a mile of Gowan [Shanty Bay], where a heavy half-mile drift had to be run through. This was safely got over and the train proceeded on its way, meeting another drift beyond Gowan, which was also, after half and hour's labor, go through. At Watt's Crossing, about two miles north of Gowan, another blockade had to be run, and it proved a disastrous one. Driving along through the drift, the leading engine suddenly left the track, ran about fifteen feet and then plunged headlong down an embankment fifteen feet high, through a fence into a field, where it brought up on its side—the other engine with the train attached kept the track and continued on its way as though the loss of its leader did not affect it at all. How this was done was simply marvellous and beyond explanation. It might have taken the whole train with it down the declivity, and what the consequence would have been is something awful to contemplate. Beyond the scene of the accident the train was brought to a standstill and the frightened passengers, appalled by what had occurred, were actually afraid to return expecting to find an engine wrecked and the driver and fireman mangled corpses. Mustering up courage however, some walked back and were rejoiced to find the supposed dead men emerging from their uncomfortable quarters at the foot of the hill, unhurt, but, of course considerably shaken and scared They were congratulated upon all sides on their providential escape from an awful death and then besieged with questions. Mr. Fennell told his story somewhat like this: Seeing his engine had left the track he immediately whistled on brakes, reversed her, and proceeded to let off steam. As the ponderous machine careened down the bank he thought death was inevitable and gave himself up for lost. But the bravery and presence of mind which characterize men of his class, never deserted him, and though going down to destruction, as he thought, he still kept tugging at the escape valves, knowing the danger of a burst up. When the locomotive settled down, he and his companion managed to crawl out of the cab window, and still mindful of his duty, Fennell went to work and shovelled snow into the furnace with his hands—thus saving his engine from demolition by explosion. An examination showed that the locomotive had carried its own tender and the push-bar of the other with it when it broke away. The train finally proceeded on its trip, leaving the wrecked engine, which was taken up and removed on Tuesday.

Another mishap on the same day and of somewhat similar nature may be briefly narrated as follows: At Pine Plains, about a mile and a half north of Angus, a train consisting of two engines and a van of laborers, which had been despatched to clear the track of snow, encountered a huge snow bank, left the track and ran up a sand bank, with such force as to bury the fore part of the locomotive deep in the ground and smash it up considerably. The injured engine (no. 30) was taken to Toronto for repairs.

Stations: Angus, Shanty Bay

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