Brian Roulston
Step back to early March 1933. Hamiltonians were excited about the news that the world’s fastest train would be coming to our city – The Royal Scot. Read on to learn more about the ‘speed demon of the iron road’ as it was often referred to, and its planned layovers as it heads to the Chicago World’s Fair with stops in Ottawa, Toronto, Hamilton and beyond.
The Royal Scot was the most powerful engine at that time used for express duties on the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) line throughout the U.K. It averaged around 52 mph over a 300-mile run. It was a daytime train with no overnight accommodations. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway wanted to showcase the locomotive as a modern and luxurious model, and it would need sleeper cars if it ran in Canada and the U.S. The Royal Scot came with eight cars: an electric kitchen car capable of cooking the most exquisite gourmet meals anywhere, a first-class lounge car, a first-class sleeping car, a third-class sleeping car, two brake cars and other support cars for the engine. Initially, a three-man crew was sent along, Driver William Gilbertson, Fireman John Jackson, and Fitter Clifford Woods.
The Great Depression devastated the global economy. By 1933, almost half of America’s banks had failed, causing individuals to sell businesses and cash in their life savings. The worst continued to worsen, leading to a prolonged economic downturn. It looked like the tour might be a no-go because of these financial conditions, but at the last minute, all parties agreed to press on. This was to be a goodwill tour jointly funded by the British government and the London, Midland, and Scottish Railway to strengthen the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom. The American government saw the tour as a minor distraction from the depression. Later, it was decided that Canada would also be included. The anticipation and excitement were overwhelming as people in both Canada and the United States welcomed the tour.
On April 30, 1933, the Canadian vessel the BEAVERTON arrived at the Tilbury Docks, and loading of the 82-ton engine was begun. The engine was broken up into three main parts and placed into the hold while a set of tracks was welded on the BEAVERTON’s deck, and the cars were chained in place. The voyage was uneventful, and BEAVERTON arrived in Montreal on April 21,1933. The locomotive was taken to Canadian National Railway’s Angus shops and pieced together. To meet American and Canadian laws, The Royal Scot had to be fitted with a center light, a warning bell and a cowcatcher, a device mounted at the front of a locomotive to deflect obstacles on the track that might otherwise damage or derail the train. Before the scheduled time, thousands of people had gathered along the railway tracks to witness The Royal Scot’s first test run on foreign soil. She did not disappoint, reaching a speed of 121 km/h (75 mph), which was astounding for the time. The welcome the train received upon its arrival was genuinely remarkable. Both the media and the public gave the speed demon a standing ovation.
On May 1, The Royal Scot began its tour at Windsor Station in Montreal. A large crowd of 18,500 people gathered to view the departure. The tour’s first stop was Ottawa, where thousands of people lined the platforms and the tracks outside the city to catch a glimpse of the train. The next stop on the grand tour was Exhibition Park in Toronto, where a staggering 10,000 people gathered to marvel at the British masterpiece.
Huge crowds gathered at rural stations and along railway tracks as they rolled through from town to town.
By the time The Royal Scot reached Hamilton, the British locomotive had reached celebrity status across the continent, akin to the Beatles. The city had not been this excited since the Prince of Wales’s visit in 1860. The new TH&B Rail Station (now GO Station) on Hunter Street was nearing completion; at 3:15 pm on Thursday, May 4, The Royal Scot arrived and was parked on the newly built high-level track. However, people would have to walk through the old Victorian-style station built in 1895 to get close to her. Much to the surprise of TH&B and city officials, including the Hamilton Police, the place was overwhelmed with people for blocks away from the station. There were senior citizens, mothers with toddlers in tow, and people walking with crutches. Schoolchildren scaled the hill alongside the track. An estimated 25,000 people showed up in hours to see the little train. There was pushing and shoving as people tried to get closer to see the locomotive. The Royal Scot’s visit was cut short to restore calm and public safety. The locomotive was ordered to depart early for its next stop, Niagara Falls.
At Midnight, 10,000 American citizens waited in a torrential downpour to see Number 6100 cross the border. From Ottawa to Cincinnati, 531,000 visitors passed through the train. The excitement and wild enthusiasm were repeated everywhere she went, including the World’s Fair. On May 25, the day the fair opened, 17,227 people passed through the train; by August 3, one million people went through.
The original arrangement was for The Royal Scot to return to Montreal with stopovers at various exhibitions. Because of her popularity, an extended tour was decided to be feasible. As cities across America and Canada invited her, more stops were added to the route. At this point, a relief crew was added, Fireman Tom Blackett, Mr. C.O.D Anderson would handle the technical parts of the train, and Mr. T.C. Byrom would serve as a liaison officer.
The Royal Scot was never designed to handle extreme heat or extreme cold, but she proved her resilience by stopping in Las Vegas in the summer at 43℃ (110℉) and travelling through Death Valley, where temperatures often exceed 49℃ (120℉). She climbed some of the steepest mountains through Colorado and the Canadian Rockies without an assisting engine. It pushed through frequent snowstorms with ease. When The Royal Scot finally arrived in Montreal on Armistice Day, November 11, the temperature was -13℃ and a blinding snowstorm. As the train rolled to a stop, Gilbertson claimed, “We took a whole truckload of spare parts and we haven’t used one!” Engineer Gilbertson’s first order of business was to take a cab and lay a wreath on the Canadian Pacific Railway’s Great War Memorial, a tribute from the London, Midland and Scottish Railway.
The Royal Scot’s triumphant 18,000 km (11,194 mi.) tour of North America concluded an impressive feat. It became an ambassador for England, welcoming over 3 million visitors through her over its seven-month visit. The train also inspired new design changes to the Canadian National locomotive fleet in 1936.
After a successful journey, the little train was again loaded aboard the BEAVERTON, and at 7:00 am on November 24, it started for home through the first ice of St. Lawrence.