Union Station - Part 1

It's October 15th, 1851, and some very important people, including the mayor and the governor general, have gathered in a vacant lot near Front and Simcoe for a major event hosted by the Ontario, Simcoe, and Huron Railroad.

The day's festivities have already included a parade through the streets of Toronto, and later tonight, a ball will be held at St. Lawrence Hall.

You might imagine that these events are being held to celebrate the launch of a new railway, but the launch is still two years away.

All of this fuss is for a sod-turning ceremony.

The governor general does the honors, and everyone cheers.

At this time, just the promise of a railroad is enough to generate excitement among the citizens of Toronto.

It's hard to overstate just how much the development of steam-powered railroads changed the world.

We mentioned the part about steam power because that was the new innovation.

Rail transportation had been around for thousands of years.

However, they had always used animals or humans to move things along.

Now, steam engines were being used to propel trains faster and further than ever before.

Railroads made it possible to move people from place to place at incredible speeds.

Travel from Montreal to Toronto went from a multi-day journey to a 14-hour trip, and depending on the traffic on the 401, it can still take that long.

Transporting goods suddenly became cheaper and easier.

New products appeared on store shelves, and existing ones became more affordable.

Economic development often followed the tracks, and people flocked to the cities and communities connected by the railroads.