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65-447: In 1797, Holmes' parents, Thomas Holmes and Susanna Scott, and his older brother, Benjamin were emigrating to North America when they were captured by a French frigate . They were taken to Cádiz , Spain , where Holmes was born. The family eventually reached British North America in 1801, settling in Montreal . Holmes apprenticed to Daniel Arnoldi , a leading Montreal physician, and

130-519: A hard rock trio from Flint, Michigan , called itself Grand Funk Railroad in 1969. Like the CPR and CNR, the GTR began building and operating hotels during the first two decades of the 20th century. Most of the hotels survived the takeover of the GTR by CNR in 1923 and were operated by Canadian National Hotels : Grand Trunk Railway was built fully a century before major property and highway development took place in

195-677: A judge of the Lower Canada Court of Queen's Bench. Holmes died at Montreal in 1865. 1st Parliament of the Province of Canada Grand Trunk Railway The Grand Trunk Railway (( reporting mark GT ); French : Grand Tronc ) was a railway system that operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario and in the American states of Connecticut , Maine , Michigan , Massachusetts , New Hampshire , and Vermont . The railway

260-589: A moderate independent position, and ended the last session as a member of the reform-minded French-Canadian Group. He explained that his views on cooperation with the French-Canadian members had changed over the course of the Parliament. This transition in his political views had resulted in a loss of support from some in the Montreal English-speaking community, who viewed him as a "ratter". By 1844,

325-584: A result of the GTPR, and its shareholders, primarily in the United Kingdom, were determined to prevent the company from being nationalized as well. Eventually on July 12, 1920, GTR was placed under control of another federal government Board of Management while legal battles continued for several more years. Finally, on January 20, 1923, GTR was fully absorbed into the CNR on a date when all constituent companies were merged into

390-587: A royal charter, the Montreal Medical Institution joined McGill College to become the McGill College Medical Faculty . Holmes became a founding member of the faculty. In 1843, he was appointed professor of the principles and practice of medicine and became head of the faculty. In 1854, his title was changed to dean. Holmes died unexpectedly in 1860. In 2020 Richard W Vaudry wrote an extensive biography of Holmes, linking him closely with

455-517: A signal for an open drawbridge on the Richelieu River near the present-day town of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Quebec , plunging onto a passing barge and killing 99 German immigrants. Canadian Rail speculated in 1963 that an independent GTR might have survived had it always used standard gauge. The GTR was a private company headquartered in England that received heavy Canadian government subsidies and

520-540: A strong position in the government. He . . . had taken his seat in Parliament with prejudice for his guide — the veil had since fallen from his eyes, and he was ready to act cordially with gentlemen of French origin. In the first general election of 1841, Holmes was elected unopposed to the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada as one of two members for the city of Montreal , alongside George Moffatt , another Montreal businessman. A firm supporter of

585-525: The Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) to meet British Columbia's conditions for joining Confederation. By the early 20th century, GTR desired to operate in Western Canada , particularly given the virtual monopoly of service that CPR maintained and the lucrative increasing flows of immigrants west of Ontario. The federal government encouraged GTR to co-operate with a local railway company operating on

650-558: The Continental Divide in North America at Yellowhead Pass . GTR's cost-conscious president Charles Melville Hays was one of the victims on board RMS Titanic on April 15, 1912. His death is speculated to have contributed to poor management of GTR over the ensuing decade, and also contributed to the abandonment of the uncompleted Southern New England Railway to Providence, Rhode Island , begun in 1910. Construction started on

715-761: The Prairies , the Canadian Northern Railway (CNoR), but an agreement was never reached. CNoR decided to build its own transcontinental system at this time, forcing GTR in 1903 to enter into an agreement with Wilfrid Laurier 's government to build a third railway system from the Atlantic to the Pacific. GTR would build (with federal assistance) and operate the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway (GTPR) from Winnipeg, Manitoba to Prince Rupert, British Columbia , while

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780-511: The St. Lawrence River . It quickly expanded its charter eastward to Portland, Maine , and westward to Sarnia , Ontario. Over time it added many subsidiary lines and branches, including four important subsidiaries: A fifth subsidiary was the never-completed Southern New England Railway , chartered in 1910, which would have run from a connection with the Central Vermont at Palmer, Massachusetts , to

845-795: The St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad . In 1853, when the Grand Trunk Railway acquired the St. Lawrence and Atlantic, Holmes continued as a vice-president of the Grand Trunk. That same year, he was elected a director of the Bank of Montreal. He retained that position until his death. Following the rebellion in Lower Canada, and the similar rebellion in 1837 in Upper Canada, the British government decided to merge

910-423: The gauge difference , the GTR experimented with a form of variable-gauge axles called "adjustable gauge trucks", but these proved unreliable. The GTR system expanded throughout southern Ontario , western Quebec, and the U.S. state of Michigan over the years by purchasing and absorbing numerous smaller railway companies, as well as building new lines. GTR's largest purchase came on August 12, 1882, when it bought

975-553: The 1,371-kilometre (852 mi) Great Western Railway , running from Niagara Falls to Toronto, and connecting to London , Windsor , and communities in the Bruce Peninsula . The company sold the line along the St. Lawrence River between Rivière-du-Loup and Lévis in 1879 to the federal government-owned Intercolonial Railway (IRC), and granted running rights in 1889 to the IRC on trackage between Lévis and Montreal (via Richmond); however,

1040-467: The Bank of Montreal was suffering due to the absence of Holmes. He was persuaded by the Lafontaine group to resign his seat to trigger a by-election, which was won by the Lafontaine candidate, Lewis Thomas Drummond . Holmes returned to work at the bank, but he found that his political stances hampered his reputation for impartiality in the business community. He resigned from the bank in 1846. Holmes

1105-556: The CAR in 1905, although the purchase was not ratified by Parliament until 1914. The routing of these systems was extremely speculative, as GTPR's main line was located farther north than the profitable CPR main line in the Prairies, and NTR was located even farther north of populous centres in Ontario and Quebec. Construction costs on the GTPR escalated, despite having the most favourable crossing of

1170-654: The Château Laurier in Ottawa. Hays blundered in 1903 by building a subsidiary, the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway Company some 4,800 kilometres (3,000 mi) long; it reached Prince Rupert in northern British Columbia in 1914. The government built and the Grand Trunk was to operate the National Transcontinental to link the main Grand Trunk with its Pacific subsidiary. The very expensive subsidiary

1235-534: The Conservative party. Carlos and Lewis (1995) show that it managed to survive because its British investors accurately assessed the corporation's value and prospects, which included the likelihood that the Canadian government would bail out the railway should it ever default on its bonds. The government had guaranteed a very large loan and had enacted legislation authorizing debt restructuring . These arrangements allowed

1300-592: The Crown corporation. At the time that the GTR was fully merged into CNR, approximately 125 smaller railway companies comprised the Grand Trunk system, totalling 12,800 kilometres (8,000 mi) in Canada and 1,873 kilometres (1,164 mi) in the United States. Canada's worst railway accident based on loss of life happened on the GTR, occurring on June 29, 1864, when a passenger train operating between Lévis and Montreal missed

1365-455: The GTPR and the limited financial returns being realized, GTR defaulted on loan payments to the federal government in 1919. GTPR was nationalized on March 7 of that year, being operated under a federal government Board of Management until finally being placed under the control of the Crown corporation Canadian National Railways (CNR) on July 20, 1920. GTR underwent serious financial difficulties as

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1430-516: The GTPR/NTR in 1905, and the GTPR opened to traffic in 1914, followed by the NTR in 1915. It was a transcontinental system, with the only exception being the NTR's ill-fated Quebec Bridge , which would not be completed for several more years. The first indication the arrangement with the government was faltering came when GTR refused to operate the NTR, citing economic reasons. With the enormous cost of building

1495-645: The Grand Trunk Corporation as a Class I railroad . The Portland, Maine-Chicago, Illinois mainline of the Grand Trunk is or was known by the following names: The Montreal-Toronto segment had been known by the following names: The Grand Trunk Railway Building on Warwick House Street in London continues to stand. Built by Aston Webb , the 7 storey building was built in 1907 with the banner The Grand Trunk Railway of Canada on 4 Warwick House Street and Canadian National Railway on Cockspur Street. CN no longer owns

1560-603: The Grand Trunk was on the verge of bankruptcy and in no position to expand further east to Halifax . On the eve of the American Civil War , it stretched from Sarnia in the west to Rivière-du-Loup in the east and Portland in the southeast. Colonists in the United Province of Canada, some of whom had experienced their territory being attacked by the United States fifty years earlier (in the War of 1812 ), were uncomfortably close to

1625-652: The Great Western Railway routing instead. CN continues to use the "Grand Trunk" name for its holding company the Grand Trunk Corporation . The corporation was created in 1971 to provide autonomy in operation for CN's US subsidiaries: Grand Trunk Western Railroad ; Duluth, Winnipeg & Pacific Railway ; and the Central Vermont Railway . The main goal of the corporation, headquartered in Detroit ,

1690-520: The IRC's construction of a more direct line from Lévis to Saint-Hyacinthe in 1899 saw most of this traffic transferred to that line. As the dominant railway in British North America, GTR was reportedly asked by the federal government soon after Confederation to consider building a rail line to the Pacific coast at British Columbia but refused, forcing the government to enact legislation creating

1755-447: The Montreal English-speaking community. In 1817, he began work as a discount clerk with the newly established Bank of Montreal . Within ten years, he became cashier (general manager) of the Bank. For the next twenty years, from 1927 to 1947, he guided the development of the Bank, taking responsibility for his management decisions and acting in a non-partisan fashion, which was important for an English-speaking banking organization in

1820-509: The Parliament building in Montreal . Holmes broke with the Reform ministry in 1850, when he became a supporter of annexation and more extensive legal and political reforms. He was moving from Reform to the nascent Parti rouge . He did not stand for election in the general election of 1851. By 1833, Holmes was involved in Montreal municipal politics. He was elected to the city council representing

1885-562: The Reform ministry of Louis-Hippolyte LaFontaine and Robert Baldwin came in 1843, over the implementation of responsible government . The Lafontaine-Baldwin ministry resigned. Holmes was one of the co-sponsors of a resolution in the Legislative Assembly, supporting the outgoing Reform ministry and calling on the Governor General to respect the principle of responsible government. From his initial Tory position, he had shifted to

1950-509: The St. Lawrence River on August 25, 1860, with the opening of the first Victoria Bridge at Montreal (replaced by the present structure in 1898); the bridging of the Niagara River between Fort Erie, Ontario and Buffalo, New York ; and the construction of a tunnel beneath the St. Clair River, connecting Sarnia, Ontario, and Port Huron, Michigan. The latter work opened in August 1890 and replaced

2015-571: The United States. Many citizens thought that the only way to finish the Grand Trunk – and protect the country – would be to unite all the colonies into a federation so that they could share the costs of an expanded railway system. Thus the British North America Act, 1867 included the provision for an Intercolonial Railway to link with the Grand Trunk at Rivière-du-Loup. The end of the American Civil War saw British North America on

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2080-671: The War of 1812, he was a supporter of annexation by the United States in the late 1840s, and a signatory of the Montreal Annexation Manifesto . He became a vice-president of the Grand Trunk Railway , and also a director of the Bank of Montreal. Born in 1794 in Dublin , Ireland , Holmes was the son of Thomas Holmes and Susanna Scott. His father had some military background. In 1797, the Holmes family took ship to North America, but their vessel

2145-553: The best man after special examination by answering, in writing, three questions proposed by each member of the faculty." After 1877 the Faculty did not require graduating students to submit an 'inaugural dissertation' and the Holmes Gold Medal was awarded to the student who achieves the highest academic standing upon graduation. Benjamin Holmes (Canadian politician) Benjamin Holmes (April 23, 1794 – May 23, 1865)

2210-513: The company to float new bond issues to replace existing debt and to issue securities in lieu of interest. Charles Melville Hays joined the Grand Trunk in 1895 as general manager (and in 1909, president, based in Montreal). Hays was the architect of the great expansion during a colourful and free-spending era. He upgraded the tracks, bridges, shops and rolling stock, but was best known for building huge grain elevators and elaborate tourist hotels such as

2275-557: The deep-water, all-weather port of Providence, Rhode Island . The company was incorporated on November 10, 1852, as the Grand Trunk Railway Company of Canada to build a railway line between Montreal and Toronto . The charter was soon extended east to Portland, Maine and west to Sarnia, Canada West . In 1853 the GTR purchased the St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad from Montreal to the Canada East – Vermont border, and

2340-405: The dies having been struck in England by Mr. F. Carter of Birmingham. It is to perpetuate the memory of one of the original founders of the school, the late Dr. Holmes, a man who in his walk through life commanded the love and esteem of all who knew him, from his many excellent qualities as a scholar and Christian gentleman. On one side of the medal is seen in bold relief the head of Hippocrates, with

2405-422: The giant Union Army and faced terrorist attacks during the mid-19th century in the form of Fenian raids . Such security concerns led to demands for a year-round transportation system that British reinforcements could use should their territory be attacked during winter when the St. Lawrence River was frozen, and the only railway for British reinforcements to use would be the Grand Trunk connection at Portland, in

2470-553: The government would build and own the National Transcontinental Railway (NTR) from Winnipeg to Moncton , New Brunswick via Quebec City , which the GTR would also operate. As part of this program, the federal government encouraged the GTR to purchase the Canada Atlantic Railway (CAR) with lines southeast from Ottawa to Vermont, and west from Ottawa to Georgian Bay . The GTR took effective control of

2535-523: The increasingly heated ethnic politics of Lower Canada. However, after his first term as a member of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada , he found his political neutrality called into question by the English-speaking business community. He resigned from the Bank of Montreal in 1847. Holmes then began a merchandise and railway promotion business with John Young , a fellow merchant and politician in Montreal. However, in 1849, following

2600-478: The last convocation, the Medical Faculty in this University determined to establish a gold medal prize to be awarded for superior excellence to a member of the graduating class only. The competitors to be selected from those men whose inaugural dissertation is deemed worthy of receiving one hundred marks, the highest number of marks given for any thesis being two hundred. The medal is in value about fifty dollars,

2665-464: The mid-1850s. In a late recognition of his contribution to the Reform cause, the Liberal government of John Sandfield Macdonald and Antoine-Aimé Dorion appointed Holmes as the receiver of customs at Montreal in 1863. In 1853, his daughter Maria Margaret Holmes married Charles Dewey Day , who had served for a short time in the first Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada, before being appointed

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2730-498: The name in Greek characters; and on the obverse is the coat-of-arms of the College, beneath which is the following, "Facultas Medicinæ Donavit". This is surrounded by a wreath of laurel, outside of which are the words, "In memoriam Andreæ F. Holmes, M.D., L.L.D." On the rim of the medal is engraved the name of the successful candidate, with the date. The medal is given to him who proves himself

2795-613: The original route of the T&;G and extended the line to Sarnia, a hub for Chicago -bound traffic. In October of 1856, the section from Montreal to Toronto opened, while the line from Toronto to Sarnia was finished in November of 1859. Also in 1859, a ferry service was established across the St. Clair River to Fort Gratiot (now Port Huron, Michigan ). The Grand Trunk was one of the main factors that pushed British North America towards Confederation . The original colonial economy structured along

2860-593: The parent company Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railroad through to the harbour facilities at Portland. A line was also built to Lévis , via Richmond from Montreal in 1855, part of the much-talked about " Maritime connection" in British North America . In the same year it purchased the Toronto and Guelph Railroad , whose railway was already under construction. But the Grand Trunk Railway Company changed

2925-406: The railcar ferry at the same location. Common during 19th century railway construction in British colonies, GTR built to a broad gauge ( Provincial Gauge ) of 5 ft 6 in ( 1,676 mm ); however, this was changed to the standard gauge of 4 ft  8 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 1,435 mm ) between 1872 and 1885 to facilitate interchange with U.S. railroads. To overcome

2990-404: The railway industry in Canada and the United States, CN has abandoned or sold many former GTR and GTW branch lines in recent decades, including the former Portland–Montreal main line which had instigated the development of the system to a large degree. As well, a part of the original Toronto–Sarnia routing via St. Mary's Junction and Forest to Point Edward, Ontario , was sold or abandoned, using

3055-417: The repeal of the imperial preference law and its effect on Canadian exports, Holmes signed the Montreal Annexation Manifesto , calling for the annexation of the Province of Canada by the United States. That led to the breakup of his partnership with Young. He then became involved in the construction of a railway to connect Montreal to the ice-free port of Portland, Maine , and became a vice-president of

3120-597: The three northern New England states, and much of the southern areas of the new provinces of Quebec and Ontario. By 1880, the Grand Trunk Railway system stretched all the way from Portland in the east to Chicago, Illinois, in the west (by means of the Grand Trunk Western Railroad between Port Huron and Chicago). Several impressive construction feats were associated with the GTR: the first successful bridging of

3185-590: The two provinces into a single province, as recommended by Lord Durham in the Durham Report . The Union Act, 1840 , passed by the British Parliament , abolished the two provinces and their separate parliaments, and created the Province of Canada , with a single parliament for the entire province, composed of an elected Legislative Assembly and an appointed Legislative Council . The Governor General retained

3250-475: The union of the Canadas, Holmes initially was a member of the British Tory group from Canada East (as Lower Canada was now known), and a supporter of the Governor General, Lord Sydenham . However, over the course of the three annual sessions of the Parliament, Holmes gradually shifted towards the coalition of Reformers and the French-Canadian Group, and away from supporting the governor general. The major showdown between Governor General Sir Charles Metcalfe and

3315-459: The various jurisdictions it crossed and as such had the choice of geography in selecting the most direct routes. As a result, significant sections of GTR mainlines in Canada and Grand Trunk Western routes in the U.S. are still in active use by Canadian National (CN) today, particularly the Quebec City–Chicago corridor by way of Drummondville , Montreal , Kingston , Toronto, London, Sarnia /Port Huron, and Battle Creek . Following deregulation of

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3380-419: The verge of uniting in a single federation, and the GTR's financial prospects improved as the railway was well-positioned to take advantage of increased population and economic growth. By 1867, it had become the largest railroad system in the world by accumulating more than 2,055 km (1,277 mi) of track that connected locations between its ocean port at Portland, Maine , its river port at Rivière-du-Loup,

3445-444: The water route from the Maritimes up the St. Lawrence River and the lower Great Lakes was greatly expanded by the duplicate route of the Grand Trunk. The explosive growth in trade during the 1850s within the United Province of Canada and further east by water to the Maritimes demanded that a railway link the entire geopolitical region. During this time the GTR extended its line to Lévis further east to Rivière-du-Loup . By 1860,

3510-465: The west ward of the city from 1842 to 1846, and again from 1850 to 1851. In 1843, Holmes was involved in unsuccessful mediation efforts to avert strikes by workers on the Lachine and Beauharnois Canals, the bloodiest in the history of the Canadian labour movement. He was defeated in two attempts to become mayor of Montreal, in 1850 and again in 1860. Except for his attempt to become mayor of Montreal in 1860, Holmes had largely withdrawn from politics by

3575-445: The world of English-speaking Protestants in Montreal and Quebec. In his honour the first Holmes Gold Medal was awarded in 1865. It continues to be awarded annually to the McGill University (Montreal) medical school student who achieves the highest academic standing upon graduation. The Holmes Gold medal is described in the Canada Medical Journal and Monthly Record of Medical and Surgical Science (v. 1; 1865, p 535-536. ) as: "Since

3640-410: Was a Lower Canada businessman and political figure. He served in the militia of Lower Canada during the War of 1812 , including a period of captivity by the American forces. He joined the Bank of Montreal shortly after it formed in 1817, and rose to be the cashier (general manager) by 1827. He was twice a member of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada . In spite of his service in

3705-430: Was captured by a French frigate and taken as a prize to Cadiz, Spain. The family was kept in Spain for four years. Holmes' younger brother, Andrew Fernando Holmes , was born during their captivity. Finally, in 1801, they were able to complete their voyage to Lower Canada. In 1819, Holmes married Élisabeth Arnoldi, daughter of Dr Daniel Arnoldi in Montreal. Benjamin's brother Andrew apprenticed under Dr Arnoldi and

3770-474: Was far north of major population centres and had too little traffic. Nearing bankruptcy in 1919, the entire system was nationalized: the government merged the Grand Trunk, the Grand Trunk Pacific, and the National Transcontinental lines into the new Canadian National Railways. The process was completed in 1923. The Grand Trunk lines in the United States, however, kept their distinctive name. The Grand Trunk legacy seeped into late 20th century popular culture, when

3835-441: Was held as a prisoner of war in Kentucky, before being released in 1814. He was engaged in some commercial activities in Upper Canada, and then in 1815 received a new commission as an ensign in the Canadian Fencibles. During the Lower Canada Rebellion of 1837–1838, Holmes served as lieutenant-colonel in the Montreal Light Infantry. In that role, he took an active part in suppressing the Rebellion, which won him support amongst

3900-489: Was never profitable because of competition from shipping and American railways. (In 1880 40% of the Grand Trunk traffic was from one or another American city to and from Chicago, taking a shortcut across Ontario.) Inflated construction costs, overestimated revenues, and an inadequate initial capitalization threatened bankruptcy for the Grand Trunk. Sir Joseph Hickson was a key executive from 1874 to 1890 based in Montreal who kept it afloat financially and formed an alliance with

3965-435: Was not a candidate in the general election of 1844, but he did stand for election in the general election of 1848. He was elected in the Montreal riding, along with Lafontaine. He was disappointed at not being named to the Cabinet, but supported the Lafontaine-Baldwin ministry in the Assembly, including the debates over the Rebellion Losses Bill . The passage of the bill resulted in an English-speaking mob rioting and burning

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4030-413: Was one of the founders of the Montreal Medical Institute, the forerunner to the McGill School of Medicine . Holmes began work as a clerk with a group of Montreal merchants under Horatio Gates , but joined the Canadian Light Dragoons during the War of 1812 , becoming lieutenant in 1813. He took part in the Niagara campaign of 1813 in Upper Canada (now Ontario), but was taken prisoner in October. He

4095-403: Was operated from headquarters in Montreal , Quebec, with corporate headquarters in London , United Kingdom (4 Warwick House Street). It cost an estimated $ 160 million to build. The Grand Trunk system and the Canadian Government Railways were precursors of today's Canadian National Railway . The original charter was for a line running from Montreal to Toronto mostly along the north shore of

4160-461: Was qualified to practise medicine. He then went to Scotland, where he received a diploma from the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh in 1818 and a Doctor of Medicine degree from University of Edinburgh in 1819. Returning to Canada, he practised medicine joining the staff of the Montreal General Hospital in 1822. He founded the Montreal Medical Institution, the first medical school in Canada, in 1823 with John Stephenson . After failing to receive

4225-429: Was to make GTW profitable and keep parent CN from having to subsidize GTW's losses. CN sold off the Central Vermont in 1995 when CN became a public traded company instead of a crown corporation. CN continued to place its US acquisitions as subsidiaries under the Grand Trunk Corporation which includes Illinois Central , Wisconsin Central , and Great Lakes Transportation . The Association of American Railroads considers

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