The Maple Leaf was an international night train between New York City and Toronto, operated by the Lehigh Valley Railroad in coordination with the Canadian National Railway.[1] It ran from Pennsylvania Station in New York City and it concluded at Toronto's Union Station. It began in 1937; and a predecessor LV train on a similar itinerary was the Toronto. The Maple Leaf and the John Wilkes were the last named passenger trains operated by the Lehigh Valley Railroad.[2]

Maple Leaf

The Maple Leaf coming into Allentown Station on its final run, February 4, 1961
Overview
Service type	Inter-city rail
Status	Discontinued
Locale	Northeastern United States/Ontario
Predecessor	Toronto
First service	1937
Last service	February 3, 1961
Former operator(s)	Lehigh Valley Railroad Canadian National Railway Reading Railroad
Route
Termini	New York City and Philadelphia Toronto
Distance travelled	548 miles (882 km) (New York City-Toronto)
Average journey time	13 hours, 50 minutes, northbound 13 hours, 25 minutes, southbound (1953)
Service frequency	Daily
Train number(s)	Northbound: 7 Southbound: 8
On-board services
Seating arrangements	Coach
Sleeping arrangements	Open-sections, double bedrooms and drawing room
Catering facilities	Dining car (New York-Lehighton, PA)
Observation facilities	Cafe-lounge (New York-Lehighton); cafe-parlor car (Niagara Falls, ON-Toronto)
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)

The route was double tracked from New York City to Niagara Falls; and in the Finger Lakes Region it bypassed several local stations. In contrast to the LV's Black Diamond and Star, it bypassed Ithaca on the northbound trip. However, in the final years of the Maple Leaf, after the discontinuance of those trains, it did stop in Ithaca. The train had an alternate section operated with the Reading Railroad, which originated at Reading Terminal in Philadelphia and linked with the main part of the Maple Leaf train in Bethlehem.[3]

The train had its final departure on February 3, 1961.[4][5]

In 1981, Amtrak and Via Rail reintroduced the Maple Leaf name for their New York–Toronto train, the first direct rail service between these cities since 1967. The modern Maple Leaf uses the Empire Corridor through New York State rather than the historic route of the Lehigh Valley train, neither entering New Jersey nor Pennsylvania.

References