Miscellaneous Slides 1969-1976

I hope you've enjoyed some of my Dad's slides from the early 1970's, such as Amherst View and Valois and Kingston. My brother Dave kindly scanned and shared boxes of these slides. Not all of the slides lend themselves to stand-alone posts. This post contains some miscellaneous slides, many from family vacations taken by L.C. Gagnon. Two examples: along a Cape Breton highway heading for the PEI ferry August 1971 (top photo) and switcher at Borden, PEI:

On an August 1970 trip to Ottawa, we stopped along the way, possibly Bells Corners per Jakob Mueller, and this CP switcher-led train of hoppers scuttled by:

Of course, vistas for viewing are much different now. This June 1969 view from Kingston's Hilltop Motel towards the Princess Street overpass over CN includes an eastbound passenger train. Jakob Mueller suggested that there's a 600-series stainless steel diner in the consist. This was a frequent home-away-from-home during trips to Kingston. Taylor-Kidd Boulevard now slices across these former farm fields:

A summer of 1972 visit to Toronto included a highway-side stop at CN's MacMillan Yard:

The number of railway-owned, forty-foot box cars is remarkable, as is at least one big dimensional load (above) and here's another string of forty-footers arriving at the yard. Compare with a current view here.

I'm likely thinking, "Gee, this would look great as an HO scale layout at home!" as I survey the yard from the shoulder of Highway 7. Compare with a current view here.

During a CNR 6218 fantrip in Montreal on May 31, 1969, my siblings and I posed with vintage electric maintenance cars at Gohier, QC:

In Toronto, this photo of a CP switcher was taken during a summer 1971 visit, maybe near the Canadian National Exhibition grounds:

Back home, it's the spring of 1976 and my Dad turned his Instamatic to capture the Turbos at Kingston with an avid future blogger. Interestingly, on April 29 we observed VIA 125-153 westbound at 1043; on May 5 we observed 126-151 eastbound at 1007; but on May 8 we observed morning Turbos 125-153 and 126-151. Though no direction of travel was noted for the latter, I believe these photos were taken on May 8.

In CN colours (above) and fresh VIA/CN (below). VIA 125-153 was painted in VIA colours for publicity photos and entered service in early April, the same month it set a Kingston Sub speed record. Those same kids-on-bikes are on the platform in both photos!

The US Bicentennial date July 4, 1976 found us enjoying GMD-1's in the CN yard at Portage la Prairie, MB:

Newly-constructed CNWX aluminum grain cars:

At dusk on a September evening in 1976 , this westbound VIA passenger train arrives at Kingston:

Some photo editing brought the light levels up:

 Into the setting sun....blast-off!

Photographic technology has progressed considerably from the Instamatic era into in-camera digital photo editing and video capability. I'm glad we have these slide images taken by my Dad to enjoy, 40 years on.

Running extra...

In case you thought my Dad was a hard-core train photographer, you'll find many, many candid shots among these boxes of slides from the early 1970's. Flippin' the stacks of wax through the household intercom (above) and a future non-NHLer (below):