Grand Trunk Trail – St. Marys

Grand Trunk Trail – St. Marys. . In 1857, the Grand Trunk Railway announced plans to extend its main line from Toronto to Sarnia. As it passed through St. Marys, it was necessary to build two high trestle bridges, one across the Thames River, the other across Trout Creek to carry a branch line to London. The contracts to complete these lines were awarded to Donald Robinson and George Weir and a number of masons and quarrymen along with many labourers were hired locally to work on the project. The first train crossed this bridge in November, 1859, and the Sarnia branch of the Grand Trunk Railway began 130 years of business., In December, 1988, the Canadian National Railway announced its intent to abandon this line and a few months later the last train crossed the Sarnia Bridge. In 1993, the Town of St. Marys completed an agreement to purchase the railway right-of-way through the municipality. A group of local and area volunteers was formed in 1996 to plan and raise money for a walking trail along the right-of-way and over the Sarnia Bridge. The name of this walkway was chosen to reflect its history: The Grand Trunk Trail – St. Marys.