Description of Historic Place

The Canadian National Railway (CNR) station in Huntsville, Ontario was built in 1924. It is a single storey station with a layered roof profile located beside Lake Vernon on the north edge of Huntsville. The station is now used by Ontario Northland Railway.

Heritage Value

The Huntsville station has been designated a heritage railway station because of its historical, architectural and environmental significance.

The Canadian National Railway (CNR) station in Huntsville, Ontario was built in 1924 as the new CNR began to build its corporate image through the replacement of prominent stations. This station in Huntsville was an important tourism facility. It was designed by the office of the CNR’s Chief Engineer, and with its picturesque silhouette and well executed brickwork, represents the culmination of Canadian railway station design for smaller centres.

The heritage value of the Huntsville station resides in its overall massing and roofline, in the quality of its materials, and in the nature of its lakeshore setting.

Source:
Heritage Character Statement, Canadian National Railways Station, Huntsville, Ontario, October 1993. Heritage Assessment Report RSR-172, 1993.

Character-Defining Elements

Character-defining elements of the Huntsville Canadian National Railway Station include:
- the irregular rectangular footprint, 1 storey massing, and prominent medium-pitched, bell-cast hipped roof of the station with its layers and central gables,
- its defining profile, dominated by sweeping, layered roof lines from all four angles,
- its substantial proportions,
- the balance inherent in its vertical definition,
- the smooth aesthetic integration of special railway features such as a projecting telegrapher’s bay, broad eaves to provide passenger shelter, north end porte-cochere for moving crowds,
- the presence of remnants of rail activity such as the station sign and remnants of its semaphore superstructure,
- the disciplined placement of its apertures in two, three and four, and door-and-window groupings topped with tripartite transoms,
- the picturesque inspiration of its details: layered roof forms, multi-paned grouped windows, broad eaves, exposed roof ends, porte-cochere,
- the permanent quality, varying textures and colours of its original materials: glazed brown brick and buff brick for specific wall areas, red mortar, wood trim,
- the skilled craftsmanship in its composition: stretcher bond brickwork on the lower walls; brick soldier course; and Flemish bond brickwork on the upper walls,
- the station’s platform frame construction technology,
- all original fabric inside the station, in particular surviving terrazzo flooring and wood window and door trim,
- surviving remnants of the station’s original functional and spatial configuration.