Port Whitby and Port Perry Railway

Port Whitby and Port Perry Railway
Map
Port Perry railway station in 1912.
The Port Perry railway station on the PW&PP, seen looking north some time in 1912. The line leading to Lindsay can be seen running just to the right. The Ross Elevator can be seen in the background, rising over the roof of the station. The station area is now Palmer Park.
Overview
HeadquartersWhitby, Ontario
Reporting markPW&PP
LocaleGreater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada
Dates of operation1871 (1871)–1941 (1941)
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
The Port Perry mill and grain elevator, circa 1930. Originally built in 1873, the building remains a major landmark to this day. The original line of the PW&PP Railway can be seen in the foreground.

The Port Whitby and Port Perry Railway (PW&PP) was a railway running from Whitby to Port Perry, running north–south about 50 km east of Toronto. It was built to connect local grain and logging interests with the railway mainlines on the shores of Lake Ontario. It was later extended northeast to Lindsay, becoming the Whitby, Port Perry and Lindsay Railway (WPP&L).

The railway was never very successful, as the original engineering was considered sub-par and reliability was poor from the start. It earned the nickname "The Nip 'n Tuck", a euphemism for something considered unreliable. The last train ran in 1939, a specially commissioned passenger train, and the rails were pulled up in 1941 to feed wartime steel production.