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This page contains historical and present day photos of Ontario's King's Highway 11B (North Bay Business Route). All
photographs displayed on this page were taken by the Webmaster (Cameron Bevers), unless specifically noted otherwise. Historical photographs are arranged in
approximate chronological order, while present day photographs (Year 2000 to date) are arranged by location from south to north. Click on any thumbnail to see a
larger image!
Please note that all photographs displayed on this
website are protected by copyright. These photographs must not be reproduced, published,
electronically stored or copied, distributed, or posted onto other websites without
my written permission. If you want to use photos from this website, please
email me first for permission. Thank-you!
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Historical King's Highway 11B (North Bay) Photographs
Above - Overhead guide signs at the Hwy 11 & Hwy 11B Junction between Callander and North Bay in 1958. This overhead sign was installed at the southern end
of the North Bay Bypass, where motorists were presented with the choice of either bypassing North Bay or following the old route of Hwy 11 (the Hwy 11B Business Route)
through Downtown North Bay. It is believed that this was the very first overhead sign structure built by the Department of Highways of Ontario (DHO) in Northern
Ontario. See an Enlarged Photo Here. Photo taken in 1958. (Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1958) 
Above - Reconstruction and widening of Hwy 11B (Lakeshore Drive) approaching North Bay north of Jessup's Creek, Contract #1962-233. See an
Enlarged Photo Here. Photo taken in 1963. (Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1963) 
Above - North Bay Welcome Arch on Hwy 11B approaching Downtown North Bay in 1965. The overhead sign on the welcome arch reads "GATEWAY OF THE NORTH - CITY OF
NORTH BAY". At one time, all traffic entering North Bay from the south via Hwy 11 (later known as Hwy 11B) passed below this welcome arch. The arch still stands today
on an access road within Lee Park, although through traffic is now diverted around the arch on a revised alignment via Main Street. Careful observers will note that
the overhead sign forming the arch once boasted bright neon tube lettering so that the sign could be illuminated at night. See an
Enlarged Photo Here. Photo taken in 1965.
(Photo courtesy of Preston R. Quirt) |
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Present Day King's Highway 11B (North Bay) Photographs
Left - Freeway guide sign marking the exit for Hwy 11B (Lakeshore Drive) on northbound Hwy 11 approaching North Bay. See an
Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on August 26, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers) Right - Eastern side of the Lavasse River Bridge on Hwy 11B (Lakeshore Drive) at Nipissing Junction between Callander and North Bay. See an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) 
Left - Facing south along Lakeshore Drive (Hwy 11B) at the Lavasse River Bridge. The intersection lying just beyond the bridge is Pinewood Park Drive (Old
Hwy 11). A bypass was constructed around North Bay in the early 1950s. When the bypass was first completed in 1953, it tied back into the original route of Hwy 11 at
this intersection. In order to more clearly differentiate between the original route of Hwy 11 via Downtown North Bay and the new route of Hwy 11 via the North Bay
Bypass, the DHO chose to renumber the Downtown North Bay route of Hwy 11 as Hwy 11B in 1958. Today, Lakeshore Drive meets the current freeway route of Hwy 11 at a
grade-separated interchange about 350 metres ahead. See an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) Right - Western side of the Lavasse River Bridge on Lakeshore Drive (Hwy 11B) at Nipissing Junction. Although it was initially built almost a century ago, the Lavasse River Bridge on Hwy 11B was widened and completed to its current dimensions in 1963, under Contract #1962-142. See an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) 
Left - Looking through the Lavasse River Bridge on Hwy 11B, observers will note that this bridge has been expanded several times since it was first built for
the original Ferguson Highway (which later became Hwy 11) almost a century ago. These progressive expansions reflect the growing importance of the Hwy 11 corridor in
the provincial highway system over the years. What started out as a winding gravel road in the 1920s has been upgraded to a four-lane divided freeway today. For early
Ontario motorists, the journey from Toronto to North Bay was a full day's drive, and a rather challenging one at that. Thanks to decades of highway investments and
improvements, this same journey can be completed rather comfortably today in about three hours. See an
Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) Right - Facing north along Lakeshore Drive (Hwy 11B) towards Downtown North Bay at the Lavasse River Bridge. See an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) 
Left - Facing south along Lakeshore Drive (Hwy 11B) at the Parks Creek Bridge in North Bay. See an
Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) Right - Eastern side of the Parks Creek Bridge on Hwy 11B (Lakeshore Drive). The small concrete structure seen here is actually a widening of the original bridge built for the Ferguson Highway in the 1930s. The bridge was expanded under Contract #1962-142 when Hwy 11B was widened from two to four lanes in 1962. Note the sign mounted to the bridge advising watercraft operators of the reduced clearance ahead. Many of the Department of Northern Development's bridges were built using concrete T-beams which project below the soffit slab. See an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) 
Left - Western side of the Parks Creek Bridge on Hwy 11B (Lakeshore Drive) in North Bay. This bridge is located between the intersections of
Lovell Avenue and William Street on Lakeshore Drive and was expanded to its current dimensions in 1962 when Hwy 11B was expanded from two to four lanes. See an
Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) Right - Facing north along Hwy 11B (Lakeshore Drive) at the Parks Creek Bridge. See an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) 
Left - Facing south along Main Street (Hwy 11B) from the North Bay Railway Overhead. Main Street becomes Lakeshore Drive at the Judge Avenue traffic signals
just ahead. Prior to the completion of the railway overhead in the late 1960s, Hwy 11B curved to the right and entered the city centre via Memorial Drive (formerly
Kennedy Avenue) and Stanley Street. See an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) Right - Facing north along Main Street (Hwy 11B) across the North Bay Railway Overhead. Geometrically speaking, this structure is actually quite complicated, with a reverse highway curve and superelevations ingeniously built into the bridge's deck. Whoever designed this structure was especially clever! See an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) 
Left - Western side of the North Bay Railway Overhead on Main Street (Hwy 11B). This structure spans the Ottawa Valley Railway (OVR) and consists of four steel
plate girder spans. Originally known as the Golf Street Overpass, this structure was built in the late 1960s under a special construction agreement between the
DHO and the City of North Bay. This structure was completed in 1968. Observers can really notice the reverse curve in this structure from this vantage point by
noting the shape of the outer barrier wall which seemingly bulges outwards. See an
Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) Right - The standard DHO double-rail parapet wall was used for the North Bay Railway Overhead on Main Street (Hwy 11B). See an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) 
Left - Eastern side of the North Bay Railway Overhead on Main Street (Hwy 11B). Although it is a hideously ugly structure from an aesthetics point-of-view, the
engineering which went into its design is quite remarkable - particularly when one considers that engineers did not have the advantage of modern computers to assist
with all of the calculations needed for design. Prior to this structure's completion in 1968, Hwy 11B traffic crossed the railway via an at-grade railway crossing on
Stanley Street. The at-grade crossing was a major traffic bottleneck in the city, which was alleviated with the completion of this new railway grade separation. See
an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) Right - Facing south across the North Bay Railway Overhead on Main Street (Hwy 11B). See an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) 
Left - Just beyond the North Bay Railway Overhead, two streets split off from one another. Main Street forks to the left, while the "through" street become
McIntyre Street. Northbound and southbound Hwy 11B followed a parallel one-way street system through Downtown North Bay. See an
Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) Right - North Bay Gateway Arch as it stands today in Lee Park. Although the arch has been modified several times since it was first erected in 1928, it still consists of the same general features as it did decades ago. However, the neon tube lettering on the sign was removed during restoration work carried out on the arch. See an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) 
Left - Plaque commemorating the history of the North Bay Welcome Arch. See an
Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) Right - Facing south through the North Bay Welcome Arch. In the background, one can see the intersection of Judge Avenue and Main Street/Lakeshore Drive. Prior to the completion of the adjacent North Bay Railway Overhead in the late 1960s, Hwy 11B continued straight ahead through the arch and tied into Lakeshore Drive in the background. See an Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers) 
Above - Among the most interesting features of the North Bay Welcome Arch is the historic mileage tablet incorporated into one of the arch's support columns.
The engraved tablet shows the mileage from North Bay to various Northeastern Ontario towns and cities. These mileages reflect historical 1920s road distances from
North Bay via the original route of the Ferguson Highway. Once the Ferguson Highway was assumed by the DHO as Hwy 11 in 1937, numerous improvements and highway
relocations took place. These improvements to Hwy 11 have shortened the highway distance to these destinations quite noticeably over the past century. See an
Enlarged Photo Here. (Photograph taken on July 20, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers)
More King's Highway 11B Photographs Coming Soon!
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Links to Adjacent King's Highway Photograph Pages:
Back to King's Highway 11 Photos /
King's Highway 11B (North Bay) History /
On to King's Highway 12 Photos
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