In the late 1980s I wrote a book titled Come Walking and Leave Early which was a general history of the Chatham Wallaceburg and Lake Erie Electric Railway.

The derogatory play on the name was a form of verbal ridicule related to the somewhat reliability-challenged reputation of the railway for mishaps, derailments and other ills that seemed to plague the entire operation from the outset.

I think much of the trouble was premised by the fact that the railway employed 25-pound rails as opposed to 60-pound rails needed to accommodate the large freight business done by the CW & LE, particularly bulk transport of sugar beets.

The railway was designed to cater to self-propelled passenger cars but there was better money in freight and that is where operation began to deteriorate.

The CW & LE was unique in that it was an “interurban line” that not only served as a streetcar system for Chatham but also served Wallaceburg, Pain Court, Charing Cross, Cedar Springs and Erie Beach.

A........

© Sarnia Observer