Ontario Highway 7 Photographs - Page 1 - History of Ontario's Kings Highways

Left - Old level rail crossing on Hwy 7 at Concord in 1929, before the Concord Subway was constructed
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1929)

Right - New Canadian National Railway (CNR) Subway on Hwy 7 at Concord, west of Thornhill (1930)
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1930)

Left - Old level rail crossing on Hwy 7 at Woodbridge in 1929, prior to reconstruction. This was one of several dangerous railway crossings on the Ontario Provincial Highway System that was eliminated through the construction of grade separations in the 1920s and 1930s.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1929)

Right - Completed Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) Subway and Hwy 7 diversion at Woodbridge, facing east (1930)
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1930)

Above - Junction of Hwy 7 & Hwy 10 at Westervelt Corners north of Brampton, facing south along Hurontario Street in 1930. This photo shows the original directional "Y" intersection at the Hwy 7 & Hwy 10 Junction north of Brampton. For many years, Hwy 7 & Hwy 10 shared a short concurrent routing between this highway junction at Westervelt Corners (located at the present-day intersection of Bovaird Drive & Hurontario Street) and Downtown Brampton. The two highways shared this route from the time route numbers were first introduced on Ontario Highways in 1925 up until the early 1980s, when Hwy 7 was rerouted along Bovaird Drive and the newly-built Hwy 410. Note the pre-King's Highway triangular Ontario Provincial Highway signs and the unusual square "STOP" sign at right. Compare this 1930 photo to this 2004 photo of the same intersection. See an Enlarged Photo here.
(Photo © Archives of Ontario - Series RG-14-162-2, Volume #1)

Left - New penetration pavement on Hwy 7 west of Norval (1930)
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1930)

Right - New Breslau Canadian National Railway (CNR) Subway on Hwy 7 east of Kitchener in 1931. This grade separation was built as part of a highway improvement project between Kitchener and Breslau during 1931. A new bridge over the Grand River was constructed, along with this subway under the adjacent CNR. The two-lane subway seen here stood until 1981, when it was replaced by a new four-lane structure to accommodate a widened Hwy 7.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1931)

Left - New Grand River Bridge on Hwy 7 near Breslau, east of Kitchener in 1931. Note the old steel through truss bridge on the original alignment of Hwy 7 at left. The old steel bridge was removed after the new Grand River Bridge opened to traffic in 1931. The Breslau Bridge was constructed under Contract #1930-45.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1931)

Right - Facing east across the new Grand River Bridge towards Breslau on Hwy 7 between Kitchener and Guelph in 1931. This two-lane bridge was replaced by a new structure in 1972.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1931)

Left - Completed Kingston & Pembroke (K & P) Railway Overhead on Hwy 7 at Peter's Crossing, just west of Sharbot Lake (1932)
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1932)

Right - Work crew excavating a rock cut by hand on a new section of Hwy 7 between Perth and Madoc in 1932. This photo perfectly captures the highway's construction in action at Ross' Cut, with a makeshift crane hoisting a large boulder from the rock cut. The boulder will then be taken away on a horse-drawn cart and used as fill on another part of the highway. The section of Hwy 7 through Eastern Ontario was built in 1931-1932 as a Depression-era Relief Project, in an effort to address the widespread unemployment problems triggered by the economic downturn of the 1930s. See an Enlarged Photo here. Photo taken in 1932.
(Photo © Archives of Ontario - Series RG-14-162-5-115, Cont. B1028, Photo #84)

Left - Rock cut and graded right-of-way on a new section of Hwy 7 between Madoc and Perth (1932)
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1932)

Right - Graded right-of-way for the new Hwy 7 between Madoc and Perth (1932)
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1932)

Left - Graded right-of-way on Hwy 7 between Madoc and Perth in 1932. The construction of the Hwy 7 Extension in the early 1930s was the first new long-distance highway constructed by the Department of Highways of Ontario (DHO). Up until that time, the DHO had only built short diversions along existing highway routes. The construction of a brand-new 55 mile (90 km) highway corridor was a first for the DHO. Prior to the arrival of Hwy 7 in 1932, this portion of Ontario was very poorly served by through roads and was thus accessible only to the most determined of motorists.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1932)

Right - Rock blasting operations on Hwy 7 between Madoc and Perth in 1932. The construction of the Hwy 7 Extension from Madoc to Perth was the most ambitious highway construction project ever undertaken by the DHO at the time. This was a Depression-era Relief Project, which employed a total of 2,700 men during the highway's construction over the course of 1931 and 1932.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1932)

Left - Cleared right-of-way for the new Hwy 7 Extension between Madoc and Perth in 1932. With so many labourers working on the project simultaneously, the Hwy 7 Extension was built at an absolutely astonishing pace. The 55 mile highway extension was completed and opened to traffic in August, 1932, only 9 months after the first construction contract was let in November, 1931. Note the horse-drawn cart in the foreground bringing in granular material for the new road base.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1932)

Right - Blasted rock cut on the new Hwy 7 Extension between Madoc and Perth in 1932. Although explosives were used to loosen the rock, the use of mechanical construction equipment to clear the rock cuts out was deliberately avoided along Hwy 7. This was done to provide employment to as many people as possible during the hard economic times of the early 1930s.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1932)

Left - Excavating a rock cut on Hwy 7 between Madoc and Perth in 1932. When driving Hwy 7 today, it is actually quite shocking to think that most of the rock cuts that you drive through along the highway were originally excavated by hand!
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1932)

Right - Salmon River Bridge on Hwy 7 near Arden in 1932. This two-span concrete rigid frame structure was built in 1932 along the Hwy 7 Extension east of Kaladar.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1932)

Left - Rudsdale Creek Bridge on Hwy 7 west of Perth in 1932. This bridge was later bypassed by a new Hwy 7 alignment, which was constructed at the western entrance to Perth.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1932)

Right - Improved gravel roadway surface on Hwy 7, 3.6 miles east of Madoc (1933)
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1933)

Left - Rock cut on Hwy 7, 5.3 miles east of Marmora (1933)
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1933)

Right - Rock cut on the western approach to Marmora, facing east towards the Crowe River (1933)
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1933)

Left - New Black River Bridge on Hwy 7 west of Actinolite (1933)
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1933)

Right - New Skootamatta River Bridge on Hwy 7 at Actinolite (1933)
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1933)

Left - Rock cut on Hwy 7, 8 miles east of Marmora in 1933
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1933)

Right - New Indian River Bridge on Hwy 7 east of Peterborough in 1935
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1935)

Left - New swing bridge over the Otonabee River in Peterborough (1936)
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1936)

Right - Staggered centre construction joint between the binder course and top course on a newly-paved section of Hwy 7 east of St. Mary's in 1946. As the use of flexible pavements on highways became more prevalent in Ontario after World War II, the Department of Highways quickly adopted innovative construction techniques for building asphalt highways such as this one. Photo taken on August 9, 1946.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1946)

Above - Facing east along Hwy 7, 1 mile east of the Hwy 38 Junction at Sharbot Lake in 1946. The construction of Hwy 7 across Central and Eastern Ontario in the early 1930s opened up a vast area of the province to convenient motor travel. Even 85 years after the highway was built, the positive economic effects of the highway's construction on area tourism and travel are still being felt. See an Enlarged Photo here. Photo taken on September 27, 1946.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1946)

Left - View of Hwy 7 approaching the Department of Highways' Roadside Park at Silver Lake in 1946. Silver Lake was one of several roadside parks and campgrounds established along Hwy 7 for the convenience of motorists after the highway was completed in the early 1930s. The largest of the DHO campgrounds, Silver Lake and Sharbot Lake, later became Ontario Provincial Parks. Photo taken on September 27, 1946.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1946)

Right - New hot-mix asphalt pavement and zone striping on Hwy 7, 1 mile west of Norwood. Photo taken on October 20, 1947.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1947)

Above - Looking west along Hwy 15, one mile east of Bell's Corners in 1948. This historic photo shows the area where Richmond Road (Old Hwy 7 & Hwy 15) crosses over Hwy 416 today, between Bell's Corners and Ottawa. See an Enlarged Photo here. Photo taken on July 15, 1948.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1948)

Above - Widening a narrow rock cut on Hwy 7, 4 miles east of Marmora by H.J. McFarland Construction Contractors. Photo taken on July 30, 1949.
(Photo courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Transportation - © King's Printer for Ontario, 1949)