Ontario Abandoned Places will be rebranded as Ominous Abandoned Places

Ruins near Murray Overlook

Historic Location Mill/Foundry in Brant, Ontario, Canada

Oct 21 2021

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Recent status Historic Location
Location # 18009

Location is approximate. The fact that the location isn't visible on satellite maps and the lack of any landmarks meant I had to rely on the EXIF data on my photos.

I was hiking the Cambridge to Paris trail and spotted these ruins on the left side of the trail going towards Paris, near the Murray Overlook. Besides the walls, all I could find was a pile of bricks, a bucket, a sheet of metal, and some pipes. I really have no idea how old this is or how I could research this further, so this is it for now.

EDIT: DAExplores provided some info in the comments:

There actually used to be a second railway that ran parallel to where the rail trail is currently over 100 years ago, known as the Grand Valley Railway. Fun fact: Both of the railways were electric. This is important later. It opened in 1904, and ran from Galt to Brantford, roughly alongside the same path that the Lake Erie & Northern line (Now the Cambridge to Paris rail trail) took. Now, since the line was electric, you needed power for it, and this is where they decided to build the powerhouse for it. The railway didn't last too long, closing the Galt to Paris section in 1916, and the Paris to Brantford section in 1929. Fun Fact 2: One of the old railway stations still exists in Paris, and it has been converted into a home. TL;DR: You found a 100+ year old powerhouse for a railway that ran alongside the rail trail.

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3 years ago

I can provide some approximate history for you. There actually used to be a second railway that ran parallel to where the rail trail is currently over 100 years ago, known as the Grand Valley Railway. Fun fact: Both of the railways were electric. This is important later. It opened in 1904, and ran from Galt to Brantford, roughly alongside the same path that the Lake Erie & Northern line (Now the Cambridge to Paris rail trail) took. Now, since the line was electric, you needed power for it, and this is where they decided to build the powerhouse for it. The railway didn't last too long, closing the Galt to Paris section in 1916, and the Paris to Brantford section in 1929. Fun Fact 2: One of the old railway stations still exists in Paris, and it has been converted into a home. TL;DR: You found a 100+ year old powerhouse for a railway that ran alongside the rail trail.

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3 years ago

Thanks for the info!