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Whitby Free Press, 6 Dec 1978, p. 7

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HSt'ori cal THE "NIP AND TUJCK"9 (Part One) During Decembeiî' the spur ire tracks befween the CNR and -PR main Unres will be removed, and with the removal of these tracks, Witby loses'one of ifs links w'ifh ifs early history. The spur line is the lasf remaining portion of a ýrailway which once lirked Whitby witb Port Perry and Lindsay. The railway was built from Whifby harbor to Port Perry in 1871, and extended to Lipdsay in 1877. Urtil the 1890's if served asa, shipping route for grain and lumber but after the' export trade at the harbor died- in the early 1900's, if was use d mostly f0 take children from fhe rural part of Whitby f0 school in the town. In 1941 the railway was closed for lack of use, and all the railks were remÃ"ved and sold for war scrap, excepft for the NEWS The Christmas Teen Dance (à community project of the Brooklin and District Kinette Club),will be held Saturday, December 9-from, 8 ýp.m. f0 midnight at the Brooklin Communify Centre. Sweet Sourds will provide the music and door prizes, and spot prizes will be giver. Admission is,$2.0O and identification is required (13 f0 17 yrs.). No jeans, please. For further information caîl Jane Baron at 655-4818. Everyone is welcome to attend the "Brooklin Old Tyme Christmas" to, be presented by . Group '74 on Sunday, December 17 at 2 p.m. There will be carol singing, hot malt cider, home bakirg, and a special visif fromn Santa.. The winners of the Kinsmen Trip of the Morifh Draw. were announced on Morday, November 27. Roy Walls 0f.Anderson St. in Brooklin won the $1200.00 trip. The two, $100.00 reridezvous weekends were given to: Bill Conder of 114 Byrdn St. in Whitby and Gary Hooey of 363 Inverness Dr. in, Oshawa. VIEWS Brookin was well 'represented in the Whitby Jaycees Parade on Saturday, December 2, by the Brookîti and District Kirette Club. The theme of the'float was Sesame Street and sure enougb Big Bird, Bert and Ernie marched alorigside to greet, the childrer. Judy Lewis would like.f0 exterd thanks' to aIl wlio helped and parficipated. DATES TO REMEMBER Dec. 9. Christmas Teer Dance - Brooklin Community, Centre - 8 p.m. Dec. 17. Brooklin Old Tyme Christmas - 2 p.m. Susar Smith 655-3932 Browr's Drop Off (before 2 p.m. Sat.) Singers have busy time The- County Town Singers have a busy Christmas pro- gram Of performances this ftiorth as they take their annual "County Town Christma," concert on the road. 1 Dec. 5 at 7:30 p.m., the "i--,will ho performingat 1airview Lodge and at 9 p.m. the saime rigbt they will present a concert at a benefit night at the Holiday Inn in Oshawa for the Multiple Sclerosis and Muscular Dystrophy Sociétiesm Dec. 8 at 7:30 p.m. the Singers will be at the Whitby Seniors' Activity Centre at Brock and Pitt Streets. Dec. 13 at 8 p.m. they will present their "County Town Christmas" concert at Ajax 111gb Sehool, with- the proceeds golng to St. Paul's United Cbureh. Again this year the. Singers will b. participating in the CKLB Toy Drive Dec. 17 at Eastdale Collegiate in Oshawa. Admission fee is coie new unwrapped toy. The last performance cf the Christmas season for thle Couîity Town Singers wiII b. portion of the line between the harbor and the CPR. During its 70-year history the railway had several officiai names: The Port Whitby and Port Perry Railway; Whitby, Port Perry and .Lindsay Railway; Midland Railway and the Grand Tr unk, bu( everyone ini Whitby called it the '"Nip and Tuck." It received this name because it was "rnip and tuck" as to whether the train reached its destination, and "rip and tuck" as to whether the railway could remain financially viable. The "Nip and Tuck" was an unusual railway in many ways. Itwas the dream of marn named James Holden, who became' its managing direCtor in 1873. Mr.- Holden actuallY' obtained a charter to build a transcontinental railway from Whitby in a time when railways were a sign of progress.-He might have had some success in his projeet, but on a trip to Manitoba i 1881 to raise western capital for the'railway, he died of pneumonia and the dreamn died with him. Iristead of being a mighty transcontinental railway, the "'Nip and Tuck" was continuously in financial difficulties. On one occasion, Sheriff Nelsoni G. Reynolds, one of its directors was'ordered to seize orie 0f the railway's locomotives. i payment for a bad debt. The railway,, naturalIly woufd not give up its locomotive, so the sheriff and his deputyercd a barricade of ties on the 5developers finance town ýindustry program Af ter four months of negotiation, Mayor Jim Gartshore has succeeded in settinlg up a Whitby indus- trial 'promotion program finariced by five ma'jor- housing developers. iCouncil- approved the agreement with the builders last week. The developers, Consolidated Building Corporatioôn, Paramount lJevelopment Ltd., Costa in Estates, Markborough Properties-,and Edwir G. Hyde, have made a two-year commitment to contribute $100,000 a year toward a promotion program, involv- ing a professionialconsultant retairied by. the municipality. The program will be subject to review in January 1980. Mayor Gartshore, who has been saying for sometime Ïhatresideritial developers may be called upon to assist the town with industrial development, pointed out when council approved the program, thaf if would not conflicf with the region of Durham's industrial promo- tion plans. "This in no way wilI supercede-f0 take away from the region," hie told council. "This will be complemen- tary to theregion."P Themayor said he had infnrmed Durhamn Regior Chairmnan Walter Beafh of Wbitby's plans. Mayor Gartshore began talks with the developers Igsf summner after a staff report ChristmaS Specials on SKILL TOOLS, je G indicated the value of indus. trial commercial construc- tion Whitby had dropped f0 less that seven per cent of ahl building permits issued in the first haîf of the year. He "poirted out that the developers realize such a program is ti their own interest too, because growfh iwould have to b e stopped if it continued i only one direc- tion. According to Councillor Tom Edwards, local indus- trial' promotion programs are not unique in Ontario, but hie wanted to be sure it does not violate the Region of Durham* Act. However, hie described the town's, program as "Igenerous and prudent step on the part of the developers."( WrJnByFREEpRfESS, WEI»ESAy, DECENMR6, .1978, PAGE 7 tracks south of Dundas Street so they could stop the locomotive and put an order on it. The engineer, however, got word of the plan, and called on the fireman to "stoke ber up" as they approached the barricade. With the whistle blowing and thç engine puffing great clouds of smoke, it smashed through'the barricade, at 40 miles an hour, sending the Sheriff and his deputy running for their lives. They neyer again tried to seize a locomotive. The "Nip and Tuck" was also plagued with mechanical problems. There was a steep grade comning down from Port Perry, and the heavy freight trains would sometimes lose their brakes. It was not uncommon for farmers to see a train speeding down the line toward Whitby, completely out of -control. On one occasion in the 1870's, a load of mast timbers destired for Whitby harbor almost pitched off the wharf irto Lake Ontarîo, having run the ertire 22 miles from Port Perry, out of control. The engireer managed to bring the train to a stop within a few feet of the end of the rails. Thieschool trains, carrying scores 'of boys anid girls from the bac k concessions, to the Whitby Collegiate Institute, were sometimes hours late, as snow, blocked the rails in the winter. It was on one of those srow-blocked occasions, James Holden Jr., son of the managing director was sent up1 to Port Perry because the engineer was ilI. He took charge of the train and managed to plowhis way through heavy drifts that blocked the tracks However, the engine stalled haîf way through the drifts and would rot go forward or back. The crew and passengers spent the üight in the train, but they didn't go hungry. They broke into crates of eggs and sides of bacon'in the baggage car and had a fine feast. Ini the summertime, when the trains made their leisurely run up the grade from Whitby to'Port Perry, they moved 50 slowly that the children would* climb off the front end of- the train t0 pick strawbernies along the tracks, and climb on again at the back'end of. the train.. Sometimes they, would lire, up and pretend to push the train up the hill. Often the train was moving so slowly that a child did not have to flag it dowr to get on; he just hopped on as it went by. (Next weèk: mhore adventures on the "Nip and Tuick.") BROOKLUN RENTALS FEATURES ALL TYPES OF NEWeQÈ(UIPMENT TREWAX STEAM CAR PET CLEANER, GAS ELECTRIC HEATERS, CHAIN SAWS, CONCRETE SAWS, COMPACTORS, WALL PAPER TEAMER, TAR PS,, CONCRETE & MORTOR MIXERS, PUMPS, SNOWPLOUGHING & BLOWING EQUIPMENT, PLUS MANY MORE ITEMS. CALL 655-60 SPEND 15 MINUTES WITH UIS TOMORROW AND FIND'OUT. WHAT US GOING ON 'IN DURNAMI NOON, EVENINGS, MNT REPORTS 12:020, 6 P.OM. & il P.-M. Weathr, Sports end, News FAMIU 1x2r- B B UTfCHEI 10 Iuilding Supplies Mt. Brooklln 655-4991

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