Weston Subdivision "The North Mountain Line" or "the Weston Line" 1914-1961

The Weston Subvision ran 14.5 miles west from Centreville, on the Cornwallis Valley Railway branch, to Weston. Trains originated in Kentville.

History

A typical North Mountain Line station and warehouse at Lakeville with train approaching.

Started in 1910, the Weston Subdivision was completed in 1914. It was often referred to as the North Mountain Railway, the North Mountain Line or the Weston Line but was officially incorporated as the North Mountain Line Railway Company Limited in 1902.(1) It received a charter to build a railway in 1904 and renewed it in 1906.(2) However the owners lacked the money to start construction. Land acquisition and right of way permissions were sought in 1910.(3) It took the resources of the Canadian Pacific Railway to complete the line after the CPR bought the DAR in 1912. The roadbed was built by Kirk and Cooke, contractors while the stations were built by J.H. Hicks of Bridgetown.(4) Contractors hired local horse teams as well as Italian labourers. Work included many large concrete culverts and a long pipeline from a spring on the North Mountain to the wye at Weston to supply a locomotive water tank. A cookhouse and quarters for the workers were built at Chute Road near Weston.(5) Mobilization for war in August 1914 delayed construction but intermittent freight service began in September 1914(6) with regular freight service beginning on December 1, 1914 when the line was completed at a cost of $413,000. However the terms of the federal railway subsidy program had required that the line be completed by August 1, 1914, so the CPR had to absorb the complete cost of construction.(7) Passenger service began more slowly and was a officially launched by a large special excursion on August 1 1916 from Weston to Kingsport which attracted large crowds including "nearly everyone from Somerset".(8) At completion, the North Mountain Railway Company was absorbed by the DAR and the line became the Weston Subdivision. It was often known collectively, with the Kingsport Subdivision, as the CVR (Cornwallis Valley Railway). The Weston line offered modest passenger service but hosted heavy freight volumes during the fall and winter apple season. Summer traffic included fertilizer and limestone.(8) However the decline of the Annapolis Valley's apple industry and the growth of highways caused a dramatic drop in traffic in the 1950s.

Map of the North Mountain Railway in 1929

The Weston Line was unique in several ways. Instead of station agents, it employed a travelling agent who rode with each train, selling tickets and settling freight and express as he went. The station wickets were seldom used as most business was done aboard the train, although each station did provide a waiting room with a stove and built-in benches.(9)

Every North Mountain Line station, except Somerset, served as dwellings for the Section Foremen and their families.(10) These stations were all slightly modified versions of the standard CPR Station No. 4 Plan.(11) The Billtown Station, which still survives today, was a typical example. The only other surviving station is Somerset, which was moved to Berwick, heavily modified and converted to a private home.

On January 31, 1961 the entire Weston Subdivision was abandoned as the CVR was reduced to a spur from Kentville to Mill Village.

Trains

Train No. 21 Noon to Kentville

Train No. 22 Morning to Weston

Train No. 23 Evening to Kentville

Train No. 24 Afternoon to Weston

Gallery

<Gallery> Image:DAR0016a.JPG|"Atalanta" at Weston with driver Dan Deloughry. File:KA - 24Sept1918 - Halifax Excursions.jpg|DAR specials for the North Mountain Line in The Kentville Advertiser, Sept. 24, 1918. Image:Lakeville station 1923.jpg|Lakeville station and appple warehouse, 1923. Image:Billtown Station.JPG|The Billtown Station, used for storage in Lakeville, April 6, 2008. Image:Station master.jpg|"The Station