Kingston Industrial Employment, 1967

This 1967 listing of Kingston's industrial employment was prepared as part of a booklet for a trade tour organized by the federal government. The report notes that "there is a diversity of industry in Kingston, no one industry is dominant."

Much has been written about Kingston's employment mix, with government institutions: prisons, Canadian Forces base, government department offices; educational institutions: Queen's University Royal Military College and later St. Lawrence College; and this mix of smaller industries in which some come and go, growing and moving away, or being bought out by larger interests. 

At the time of this listing, the largest industries were those producing new 'in demand' products derived from fossile fuels and mining. The smokestack industries, such as they ever were in Kingston, had already died or were dying their slow death. Steam locomotives, small ships and lumber could be sourced more cheaply offshore and imported. High labour costs began to define profit and loss. It was a time when 'we still built things', just not as many of them, and the employment figures for those companies would never recover.

The listing shows the company name, products if shown, and employment:

• Aluminum Co. of Canada - shapes, sheets -2,170
• Aluminum Laboratories - 168
• Anglin, S. Co. Ltd. - woodworking, lumber - 72 
• Canadian Dredge & Dock Co. Ltd. - ship repairs - 24
• Canadian Industries Ltd. - Terylene - 1,030
• Fairbanks Morse (Canada) Ltd. - machinery - 270
• Davis, A. & Son Lrd. - tanners - 85
• DuPont Co. of Canada Lrd. - nylon yarn - 2,750
• DuPont of Canada Research Centre -84
• Frontenac Floor & Wall Tile Ltd. - Division of United Ceramics Ltd. - 162
• Gus Marker Block & Tile - concrete blocks - 32
• Kingston Shipyards Ltd. - ship building - 250
• Vicom & Co. (Canada) Ltd. - metal stampings - 46
• Doyles Bakery - 100
• Weston Bakeries - 185
• MacLachlan Lumber - 58

Kingston Industrial Commission sign at CN Outer Station, 1966 (top photo - Queen's University Archives).

CP D-TC Locomotives from CLC

The Canadian Locomotive Co. built 14 Diesel-Torque Converter 44-ton four-axle switchers for Canadian Pacific between 1956 and 1960. Part of their appeal to CP was that being less than 45 tons, the plucky locomotives did not require a locomotive fireman, therefore generating crew cost savings! Prior to their acceptance by CP, the little locomotives were photographed by the company before leaving Kingston. Plant buildings in the background give indications that the 'broken-window syndrome' has taken hold:

CP 20 at Ontario and Gore Streets. Try parking a locomotive on Ontario Street these days! A sign near the limestone wall points the way to Pyke Navigation and Salvage, and the diamond-shaped CLC builder's plates can be seen prominently on the side sill. 

The last five  of the D-TC's were completed in April and May of 1960. CP 23 left the plant on May 30, 1960. These photos show her at the junction of CN's Hanley Spur and the Montreal-Toronto mainline (at left) to be picked up and forwarded to CP, likely in Montreal. These little switchers comprised CP's last order placed with CLC. They were not known for their reliability, and most were retired by the 1970's.

These photos are part of the Canadian Locomotive Co. fonds, Queen's University Archives. CP 10, the first of the class is positioned for its builder's photo on Ontario Street. CP 10 and 11 were completed in November, 1956 and that's likely when these photos were taken. Interestingly, they both returned to the plant to have their trucks replaced. Initially fitted with trucks for a 60-ton, not 44-ton unit, they were overweight by 6,000 pounds. When they re-emerged in February, 1957 there was snow on the ground!

Notice how the 'side-rods' are painted silver. This no doubt comforted the old steam heads - when they saw those side-rods, perhaps they thought these new-fangled bread-boxes were not all that different. This was at the height of first-generation dieselization of both Canadian railways and the demise of steam. The upswept grey paint and the location of builder's plate and F[orward] lettering at right indicate that the front of the unit faces north to the mainline, just like virtually every other locomotive produced here.

That over-intersection streetlight catches my eye! More photos:

Davis Tannery Site Photos, 1966

These photos of the Davis Tannery site were taken in the winter of 1965-66 from unique points-of-view, on and around the tannery buildings. The photos were compiled in a duo-tang report on waste disposal from the tannery, published January 25, 1966. At the time, there was increasing concern about effluent from the tannery not draining properly into the Cataraqui River, with concern that proper city connection, not just a simple drainage ditch toward the river, should be established.

                         

The C.E. MacPherson plant across Rideau Street is just visible through the steam in the top photo:

Smokestack belonging to the former smelter site is visible in the third photo:

Not all pages are shown. This report is currently part of the Davis Tannery Fonds, Queen's University Archives. 

Two close-up views of the CP (left) and CN (right) lines running south, approaching the River Street overpass and east of Rideau Street, to downtown Kingston as seen from the tannery buildings: 

More Davis Tannery Documents

Specifically, rail-related documents pertainng to rail shipments to and from the Davis Tannery. I was pleased to see these records as part of the Queen's University Archives Davis Tannery Fonds. More than 70 years old, they are a tangible record of some of the rail traffic on CN's spur to the tannery. CN boxcar 429566 was loaded on CP with 41,000 pounds of cow hides on February 4, 1948 for furtherance to Kingston. The shipment originated at Eudore Fournier et Fils raw hides in Plessisville/Three Rivers, QC:

Fournier's bill of sale and other documents were together in this file:

This hide report was likely made upon unloading the car on February 11, 1948:

Another tabulation of the car's contents, perhaps a rough tally:

Documents pertaining to another shipment, this one in CP 173538 also originating Fournier's but recorded by brokers Central Hide & Skin in Montreal on September 28, 1949:

The Davis hide report for the car, unloaded at Kingston on October 4, 1949:

 

Similar documents showed the following cars and dates:

• CP 116172 on October 15, 1947 with 42,100 pounds of green hides
• CP 180494 on Aubust 16, 1949 with 42,800 pounds
• CP 183805 on September 27, 1951 with 46,000 pounds
• CP 178127 on June 12, 1951 with 48,000 pounds
• CN 408054 on Februar 16, 1951 with 47,500 pounds.

Usually, boxcars in hide service were older cars, not cleaned and only a cut above coal service. A production flowchart (see full flowchart - bottom of post) for the tannery included this graphic of hides arriving by CN boxcar (post-1961, note the artistic version of the CN multimark) or truck:

The only other railcar shown on this 196x document is the fleshing car, shown as an open gondola car:

Fleshing removed material from the flesh side of the hide by soaking and liming. This could be dirt or actual flesh. This material was shipped out by gondola car, to an unknown (to me) destination. Photographed as part of a January, 1966 tannery waste dispoal report, CN gondola CN 141677 is being loaded by means of a chute from the tannery building:

Another gondolas is shown outside the tannery fence:

It's likely that the majority of inbound materials and outbound finished product were shipped by rail. A 1938 letter mentions "giving the CPR a considerable amount of business from the Kingston plant in the matter of freight to England, as well as incoming freight business to the plant". Until, at least, the advent of road transportation and construction of Highway 401, likely steadily eating away at the tannery's rail traffic through the 1950's and 1960's. 

In 1936, the tannery was receiving: glycerin from Colgate-Palmolive in Toronto; phenol crystals from Monsanto in Montreal; kid finishing oil from Kehew-Bradley in Boston, among others. In 1963, the tannery received carload quantities of soda ash and sodium bichromate and unloaded using 'gravity rollers'.

Some day I'll learn much, much more about tanning, but until then, here's a production flowchart intended to show every single possible path for hides passing through the Davis Tannery! (As always, click for a larger version).

On the Move - New Exhibit!

I'm pleased to have contributed a diorama to the Pumphouse Museum's new exhibit that debuts this Friday. On the Move traces the development of transportation in Kingston over the last four centuries. By engaging with historical objects, interactive displays, and informational panels, visitors will experience how we move across water and land, the development of public transportation, and how Kingston continues to be connected to areas beyond the city’s borders. More from the museum's website:

On the Move includes several themes related to travel and transportation:

• Personal Transportation explores how individuals move under their own power, including the importance of Indigenous snowshoes and toboggans. Visitors will also learn about roads, and how early dirt paths and bone-shaking corduroy roads developed into Kingston’s modern street system. [some streets are still bone-shaking! - EG]
• Across the Water highlights how waterways influence transportation, from birch bark canoes and ferries to ice roads and modern bridge construction.
• Public Transportation is another important part of travel in Kingston and visitors can learn about stagecoaches, streetcars, buses, and more.
• Travel Outside the City explores how Kingston is connected to other regions in different ways—highways, rail, and air.

I was able to have an early look at some of the displays inside the museum and they looked varied and intriguing. I'm looking forward to visiting the completed exhibits at 23 Ontario Street, right on the water and mere steps away from two former waterfront industries - Kingston Shipyards and Canadian Locomotive Company!

Davis Tannery Documents

I took a trip through time while visiting the Queen's University Archives last week. Consider that this business is now closed, its tannery buildings demolished, and the site currently proposed for development. Yet in these shelved files, it's as if the business is still conducting business, issuing collective agreements, corresponding by letter, and preserving its detailed tanning procedures. Researchers who are interested in Kingston businesses, as I am, are fortunate to have these resources carefully organized and preserved! This post includes samples of these documents that I photographed.

Though the tannery was unionized, there seemed to be constant chafing against the union, American Federation of Labour organizer Harry Simon, and the tannery's fortunes justifying tough negotiations and conciliation to worker wages (above). Then I found the diamond-in-the-rough! Two typewritten waybill-type documents showing what I believe to be outbound loads of finished products (below). The two cars listed are CN(alternately NYC) 141278 and C&S 13870 in 1949 and 1948 respectively. It's exactly these kinds of railway-related connections I'm seeking in industry archives!

Looking into the 141278 car, it's not Canadian National because CN only had gondola cars in that series New York Central boxcars seem to start around the 170000's. So, I can't reliably pin it to a specific car, but the lading is the lading, nonetheless! Here's a photo of a similar Colorado & Southern boxcar, part of the Burlington Route car fleet:

A sample tanning procedure. I don't expect to become an expert in the process or the appearance of these products, nor the machinery and solutions used. I am, however, interested in how they got to and from the plant by rail!

I read through half a bound 6x7-inch notebook of these employee instructions. Signed by Mr Davis, they are addressed to the appropriate foreman, duplicate, with room for resolution sign-off of the issue. By today's terms, they would be termed micro-management, but remembering this was a family business, they're not surprising. One even asked the maintenance foreman to plane the office door, as it wasn't closing completely! I found this one especially micro, and cost-cutting. Why produce more wattage if not needed?

Stephen Davis' 'bible' of methods, from the time of sale of the plant to Dominion Tanners in 1973:

I couldn't believe this diagram. Hand-drawn, coloured, immaculate lettering, graph paper stapled to cardboard, 1965. A real one-shot work of art!

Earlier collective agreements showed an 8-minute break morning and afternoon, now just afternoon in the 1968 agreement. Lunch was 45 minutes.

As requested, here are four pages of the tannery's 1965 seniority list, starting from Page 4:

Click image for larger version

 

Swamp Ward Map 1930's-50's

In the lobby of the Queen's University Archives at Kathleen Ryan Hall on the Medical Quadrangle, there is peace and stillness. And an interesting display in glass cases! Someone has worked very hard to map major employers, tire dealers, scrap dealers and even barbers in the Swamp Ward. On the other side of the map, is a legend for places of worship, shoe repairs, confectioners, bakers, grocers etc. All presented with tiny coloured numbers and hand-written. This is some interesting information all in one place - from an earlier time.