Railroad Turntable

The Walker Power Building, was constructed over some of the earlier rail lines and the railroad turntable. The property existed with the appearance of a large industrial building with little physical memory of its railway history, especially after the subsequent demolition of the adjacent Pere Marquette Train Station in the 1957. This history was brought to surface when the intact railroad turntable was uncovered below the Walker Power Building foundation during soil remediation conducted as part of the current property redevelopment project. The railway turntable was found to have been left intact at the northwest end of the Walker Power building and constructed atop by the building, which has some of its column supports placed directly on top of the turntable.2 The turntable was also found to be about 100cm below the ground surface, however the exact limits of the turntable will be subject to locational measurements as indicated through subsequent Archaeological reporting. 2 The unearthing of the railroad turntable was reported by a local newspaper, with description of how the turntable potentially served small locomotives on the rail line, transporting grain from the county to Hiram Walker’s distillery in Walkerville, and transportation of tourist to Kingsville’s waterfront. 9

Historical & Associative Conclusions

Railroads were an important contributor to the rapid growth of the former town of Walkerville in its formative years. The discovery of the railroad turntable has direct associations with, and contributes to the understanding of the railroad history in Walkerville. Through the past century, the Walker Power Building property was strongly associated with and contributed to the industrial and manufacturing base in Walkerville. The property (both building and the archaeological resource of the turntable) is a significant remnant of the area’s history.

Contextual Considerations:

The property is a rare survivor of early industrial properties constructed within the core areas of Walkerville, and remains as one of the few original properties to reflect the early industrial activities which led to the economic prosperity of the former Town of Walkerville. Located on 325 Devonshire Road which was formally addressed as 22 Devonshire Road, the Walker Power Building served as a major industrial building and was ideally located next to the railway lines, which would have been extremely advantageous in terms of transportations of goods for manufacturing businesses. The railway turntable is also physically and historically linked to the surrounding area being the site of termination/end of a railway line. The Walker Power Building is a long-standing and prominent landmark in Walkerville, and is highly visible being along Riverside Drive. The property is also located at the corner of Devonshire Road, which was considered the “Main Street” of the former Town of Walkerville, and is evocative of early streetscape.

9 Cross, Brian. “Reborn Walker Power Building to Showcase Unearthed Railroad Turntable.” WindsorStar,April 11, 2019.” Retrieved from https://windsorstar.com/news/local-news/reborn-walker-power-building-to-showcase-unearthed-railroad-turntable