North Buxton Train Station
Posted by: 
Bon Echo
N 42° 18.460 W 082° 13.398
17T E 399177 N 4684661
Built in the 1870 and relocated in the 1950s and again in the 1990s, the original North Buxton Station was designated under the Ontario Heritage Act in 2015.
Waymark Code: WMY74D
Location: Ontario, Canada
Date Posted: 05/03/2018
Views: 3
The North Buxton Train Station currently sits at the corner of A.D. Shadd Rd and Elliott St in the village of North Buxton, Ontario. The station was constructed in the 1870's. It has been moved twice since that time but sits within a few hundred meters of its original location. Today the building is used as part of a local woodworking business, one of the few buisinesses in the community.
The station was designated in 2015 under the Ontario Heritage Act. The following excerpts are from the Designation Report (Chatham-Kent Bylaw Nunber 92-2015
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The North Buxton train station was originally constructed in the 1870's on the north side of the Canada Southern tracks near the A.D. Shadd Road. In the 1950's, the station was sold to the Farmer's Club and removed to a location about 500 meters away on the south side of the tracks where is was used for the storage of grain and fertilizer. The station spent many years vacant and, although still solid and original, fell into disrepair.
After building a new facility for its business next door to the station, Bradonna Woodworking purchased the building (1994) and moved it to the front/east side of its new workshop (1996) with the intent of restoring it and using it as a showroom/office for their business.
The station has important historical associations to the Elgin Settlement. The original "centre" of this important settlement, established by Rev. William King for fugitives of slavery, was in South Buxton. Following the building of the Canada Southern Railroad, commercial development shifted to North Buxton. The railroad provided direct employment opportunities for many Elgin Settlement men. Local men helped build the rail line and, after completion, many were employed as station men to maintain the tracks and the railway bed. Local men also gained employment as porters on the passenger trains that ran on these tracks. Indirectly, the rail line resulted in the construction of a hotel, lumber mills, and other industrial enterprises that took advantage of the transportation opportunities. The North Buxton community is largely the result of the railroad which this train station is directly and iconically associated with.
The North Buxton Train Station is an excellent and rare surviving example of a third quarter 19th century rural way station. The rectangular frame structure with centre bay windows retains its original board and batten exterior, interior room layout, paneled walls, ceilings, wainscot, doors, and trim.