Posted by W. D. Shaw on October 1, 2012 
Nice light, dramatic sky and a location that brings back memories with the Merrilees facility in the background. I'd met Andrew Merrilees way back around 1980 when I was a truck driver. He had a couple of loads of light rail heading out to Western Railway Construction in Thunder Bay and I was tasked to haul one of them. As they were loading my truck in the yard I asked one of the workers if there were any old cabooses lying around I could buy on the cheap for a camp on one of my Huntsville lots. He directed me to go in the office and have a talk with "The Old Man". There was indeed a caboose available, but it was in Montreal and it immediately became appareant that the shipping costs would make it beyond my means. That didn't stop him from engaging in a lengthy conversation with me about any and all things railroading. He had a great collection of artifacts and photos in his office had donated a gret deal more to the Archives of Ontario, now aptly known as The Andrew Merrilees Collection. I'd heard several years later that he had passed and the business was being operated by his son or sons. The yard looks quite empty in this shot as compared to how I remember it from so many years ago, I guess most of their efforts are being concentrated on the locomotive restoration and sales division in Montreal. He was a great guy and continues to a legend in the Canadian rail industry.
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