Homeless in Kingston

Today's municipal government grapples with providing services to Kingston's homeless. Whether it be sleeping cabins or the Integrated Care Hub, it's a perplexing challenge. But not a new one. In fact, there have been unhoused individuals in Kingston for decades, even centuries. Tents, tarpaper shacks, tenements and even boarding houses served as temporary homes, often sadly unsanitary and dilapidated. On my layout, with new space in the Rideau Street/Montreal Street area opening up, I decided to represent these down-on-their-luck men in scale. I hasted to add this is neither a sensational nor a 'cute' approach to this vexing subject in scale. As with everything else in my modelled locale, I approach this project with one goal - realism.

As with the prototype, these shelters were produced with whatever was at hand: styrene, cardstock, detail parts, glue and paint. I kept them small and rough, often open to the elements. As with other scenes on the Hanley Spur, I'm a big fan of sitting figures. If one sees a figure crossing the street...does he ever get to the other side? Meanwhile, figures can 'sit' all day and not be seen to move for hours. I made four shelters as well as firewood and a burn barrel, a washtub, as well as incorporating a stray dog, 

Posed in the natural light and on the layout (two photos above), I positioned the shelters and figures among the ruins of the ex-industry I just emplaced:

Their position is far from final, as they can be picked up, split up, moved, and replaced in any location. I will likely move them occasionally, thus modelling the nomadic nature of the prototype. As I hinted at in the introduction, this issue is not always black-and-white. These are proud men who may not be proud of their present circumstances, and additional vegetation may hide them from prying eyes.

This figure, actually a pilot from a model airplane kit, represents the health challenges plaguing homeless individuals. Though manufactured without legs to fit in the 1:72 cockpit, he accurately reflects an individual suffering from peripheral vascular disease, perhaps secondary to diabetes (below). Though it looks as if he has found a soothing stream to sit by, this also represents health hazards - effluent from the nearby tannery.

I endeavoured to give the shelters a 1970's feel, so there are no blue tarps, camping tents, mountain bikes or other modern-day accessories. As a former colleague once put it, poverty is one thing to talk about, but quite another when it's staring you in the face. Though I wish the layout could represent an ideal world, I appreciate the challenges of modelling the real world -  specifically a gritty part of town that gets little other attention, whether it be in scale or at the Council horseshoe.

Modelling an Ex-Industry

Have you heard of a deconstructed pie? It's made so the crust is not necessarily where you'd find it - in fact, it may top the pie filling! That's what was on my mind as I demolished this local industry as I built it! Wanting to fill this yawningly large space - formerly a Montreal Street scene but now between th Outer Station and tannery, I'm moving the Outer Station, the CN telegraph repeater station, CN Express and now an ex-industry to make effective use of the space:

Close-up of the planning process in action!

A shopping list of what might have graced the newly-available real estate:

Besides pie, I was thinking of K-D Manufacturing, a Montreal Street industry that remains as a weedgrown field of foundations. I decided to model a former industry, one that had long since left. I needed a foundation, and found a neat graphic while searching online:

I assembled the elements, gluing the two graphics to a piece of foamcore.

I cut out some pieces, intending to make a three-dimensional effect. I painted the edges of the foamcore, and glued the cutouts and the whole foamcore piece to a piece of thin styrene:

Here's that three-dimensional effect of broken concrete, along with some residual walls taking shape:

I added some girders and wall remnants to the foundation, along with assembling some details:

Details added:

On the layout, now to scenick it into the scene!

Oriented and scenicked in:

Changes are coming to the Outer Station!

Walking Montreal and Maple Streets, July 2022

On my annual mission to Krown Rust Kontrol, I walked while waiting. Heading up Montreal Street, I first passed the Grand Trunk Terrace on Cassidy Street (top photo). The view west from the rock cut under Montreal Street overpass is now well-forested, no longer a limestone wasteland:

Things have grown in a bit since 1976: 

Old and new at John Counter Boulevard, formerly Elliott Avenue:

A few houses on Maple Street:

The view from John Counter of Presland Iron and Steel, with buildings that housedseveral former owners

Views of Presland from Maple Street:

Until this situation is resolved, the City of Kingston might as well drop anything in its marketing that mentions history. When the trees growing through the original footprint of the circa 1855 Outer Station are taller than the chimneys, this is a travesty of history:

Former telegraph poles that one lined the mainline, just behind the former CN repeater station:

 

A desperately disparate view of the connected 1855 and 1895 Outer Station buildings. (Photo above from Queen's University Archives). Needless to say, I returned to Krown slowly shaking my head.

Archiving the Queen's University Archives

In an October 11, 1968 Whig article, the Queen's University Archives are profiled. Housed at the time in the Douglas Library, the Archivist at the time was John H. Archer and his assistant, Ian Wilson. Along with Wilson, Rose Mary Gibson is pictured with archival documents. At that time, the Archives had been preserving documents for 100 years, with their first acquisition - Fort Niagara's 1812-1813 Orderly Book!

By 1968, the Archives' main areas of preservation were University archives, as well as those of business, political, religious and literary spheres. And a 'mountain of material' had already been amassed. Those are some hoary-looking books (right). They're captioned as 'old record books' in the article! Even at this time, it was known that 70 degrees Fahrenheit, 50% humidity and acid-free containers were optimal for archival storage.

The 'young archivist' is shown examining the Queen's University Charter, and when interviewed, hoped that the archives would become a depository for Kingston-area businesses' records. Not only would the Archives preserve documents for posterity, they would alleviate the strain on the companies of retaining files. Interestingly, it was Ian Wilson who found himself in the loft of an ancient storage shed on Ontario Street in the summer of 1968, just a few months before this article was published. There, he sorted through several tons of poorly-preserved Kingston Shipyards records. At that time, the shipyards were closing. The result was R2246, the Kingston Shipyards Collection - a useful supplement to the main records of the company that resided in Collingwood, ON. 

A debt of gratitude should go to these behind-the-scenes preservationists. It is through their efforts that modern-day researchers can step back into the past.

Survey Vessel Jean Bourdon

 

With signal flags flying, the Canadian Coast Guard survey vessel Jean Bourdon was launched from the Kingston Shipyards' marine railway on March 30, 1968. Deposited into the ice-choked harbour (top photo), the 67-foot, twin-screw vessel cost $324,640. The survey vessel was destined for service in the St. Lawrence River.

Take a look at those two workers, one wielding a cutting torch under the ceremonial christening platform! That's where the real action is taking place!

Dignitaries, including a member of the clergy at far right, shipyard manager R.W. Sutton at far left, and sponsor Mrs. Maurice Boudreau, wife of superintendent of operations and maintenance for St. Lawrence ship channel division, Montreal are on the platform.

Named for the New France surveyor who hydrographically explored the St. Lawrence as early as 1645, After the launching, the workers are gone from underneath while the dignitaries enjoy the moment:

(Photos in this post from Queen's University Archives)

CLC's Office Building

The Canadian Locomotive Company (CLC) office building at the north-west corner of Ontario and William Streets was an attractive brick building with arched windows. Built in 1928 of steel and brick construction at a cost of $80,000, it was deemed fireproof. Construction on the exterior was nearly complete in January, with interior construction taking place into the remaining winter and spring months. Office furniture and supplies were moved in by August of that year. A street view from July, 1955 (top photo). It replaced an earlier circa-1920 limestone office on the opposite side of Ontario Street.

The CLC office building was located just west of a bottling works (Horne's 1910-1940's) and tenements on Ontario Street. Circa 1949 aerial view showing the office, store, and tenements (above) and a 1950's aerial view, with arrow showing the office across Ontario Street from the plant buildings:

A cast lintel plaque above the double front doors depicted CNR 6100 numbered '1928' to show the year of the building's completion. Peeking around the Inner Station in 1970:

The office building was sold to Empire Life Insurance in the early 1960's, as the office staff had moved into the works office on the William Street end of the plant buildings, by 1955. Plant operations ceased on July 1, 1969, and the plant buildings were demolished in 1971.

Marc Shaw kindly shared his photo of the CLC office building in its death throes, with Doornekamp doing what it did. The office disappeared, becoming just a memory on the current Empire Life Insurance parking lot after 1994.

(Unless otherwise indicated, above photos in this post are from Queen's University Archives)

Modelling Tannery Effluent

 

Throughout the 1960's, there were persistent complaints and calls for action to alleviate the smells and effluent emerging from the Davis Tannery on Rideau Street. Finally, in 1966 the plant made a connection to the city sewer system, in the plan below. 

Having now modelled the tannery, and adding the Cohen scrapyard, a tract of land opened up between it and the Outer Station on my layout. This had formerly been Montreal Street. What a gift that keeps on giving...space!

The connection under construction in December, 1966 (Queen's University Archives, above and below). The after  photo shows workers burying pipes. I think this was the before photo:

I built a small modelling-clay berm and scenicked it. After adding the scrapyard, I noticed that white glue was leaving a sheen that needed to be covered. I decided to use this for the effluent in the ditch. I installed a few lot-line fence posts on the far side of the ditch. In this photo, I just applied some white glue and the outlet pipe. The glue dried clear. Now - to model that smell!