Merritton Tunnel
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The Merritton Tunnel, frequently referred to as the Grand Trunk Railway Tunnel, is a historic landmark in the community of Thorold, Ontario, which runs under lock 18 of the former third Welland Canal (1887-1932).
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[edit] Unauthorized access
The abandoned former Grand Trunk Railway tunnel is still intact but is sealed at one end. There is a door that has been broken so access is possible. The opposite end of the tunnel is flooded and harder to access. The tunnel is a lurer of bush parties, paranormal activists, or crazy adventurers. The tunnel is inaccessible to vehicles, other than motorcycles and ATVs. It is known by many people as the "Blue Ghost Tunnel", due to sightings of a blue ghostly form that appears female, and has also been the hotspot for seeing and hearing ghosts from inside the tunnel. With all this attraction, and with many people getting hurt in that area, and parents threatening to sue the St. Lawrence Seaway for the area being unsafe, the west side was sealed off. But after merely a couple of days, access was regained as the steel door put in place has its lock broken. Then later a small square hole (to the left of the steel door) was created in the cement blocks.
[edit] History
1867 Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald's government makes plans to construct a third Welland Canal to accommodate the vessels using the other two canals that were already in use.
1870 Construction on the third Welland Canal begins.
1875 The Great Western Railway company requires a more durable and less interrupted way to cross the third Welland Canal. Work begins on the Merritton Tunnel by the federal Department of Public Works. A single track tunnel, between locks 18 and 19 passing under the third Welland canal.
1876 The Merriton Tunnel is completed in less than 1 year. It measures 665 feet in length or 713 feet when accounting for the winged stone work at both ends. The tunnel was constructed with hand cut limestone blocks from the nearby Queenston quarry.
1882 The third Welland Canal officially opened The Great Western Railway was merged into the Grand Trunk Railway System. The latter company was the first to use the tunnel.
1887 The Grand Trunk Railway completes laying its double track network. And a new double tracked swing bridge is erected north of the tunnel near lock 17. This swing bridge is still in use today.
1903 On January 3rd the GTR's No.4 Express train collided with a Mogul steam locomotive running light (no train) approximately 100 yards from the west entrance to the Merritton Tunnel. Two railway firemen (who managed the steam locomotive boilers) were killed. Mr. Charles Horning was killed instantly Abraham Desult sustained burns on 90% of his body and died 5 hours later in St. Catharines General Hospital .
1912 On August 1st at 7:00am the steamship La Canadienne lost control in the third Welland Canal due to mechanical problems in the engine room. The ship collided into and through lock 22’s flood gates. 4 boys fishing near the lock were swept away by the small wave created by the crash, however, only 1 was rescued.
1913 Plans begin to build the fourth Welland canal.
1915 Harry Eastwood was the last person to pilot a train through the Merritton Tunnel. The tunnel is used only by farmers to relocate their herds of cattle to fields across the canal and is soon forgotten after the 4th and current Welland canal opens. The tunnel entrances become overrun with trees and thick brush.
1920 Construction of the fourth Welland Canal begins.
1923 In July a message is put out to family members that in order to build the new canal, a cemetery known as the “Old Cemetery of St. Peters Church” would have to be relocated (This being the 150th anniversary of the church). Only 250 graves were eventually relocated to the present-day “Lakeview Cemetery”, leaving a total of 663 graves left unclaimed which are now submerged under the waters of the pondage near the pump house close to the Merritton Tunnel.
1928 On August 6th a disaster at the fourth Welland Canal took place at Lock 6 resulting in the loss of 8 men and seriously injuring 2 others, 1 of whom subsequently died of his injuries. The accident was caused when a crane carrying an end post for one of the 500-ton steel flood gates dropped its load.
1930 On August 6th, exactly 2 years later, 8 more men were killed at the canal.
2007 The "Merritton Tunnel", also known as the "Blue Ghost Tunnel", turns 125 years old.
[edit] References
- History by Kevin Valencourt
