Summary

Vandorf Station was built by the James Bay Railway in 1905 while construction of the railway was progressing south towards Toronto. A community by the same name had existed here for many decades before the railway’s arrival, though not with a substantial population. The station in Vandorf was also about 5.5 kilometres away from the more established community of Aurora; not a convenient distance by any means, but the closest the James Bay Railway ever got to it. The James Bay Railway was renamed the Canadian Northern Ontario Railway several months before it opened, as it was started by the same individuals behind the Canadian Northern Railway in Manitoba. The two systems were built separate from each other until they were joined a decade later in 1915.

Vandorf Station followed a standard design that was used extensively across the Canadian Northern system, it was a single-storey wood frame structure offering the most basic amenities. It would have contained a waiting room, baggage room and the station agent’s office in the middle facing the tracks with a large bay window for visibility. The first revenue train arrived at Vandorf on November 19th, 1906, but service was only operated between Toronto and Parry Sound at first. Only four trains stopped at Vandorf per day by 1918, and there would be little increase in service over the following decades. The presence of the Canadian Northern in Vandorf was short lived due to their poor financial situation. The railway was nationalized in 1918 and managed by federally-owned Canadian National upon its formation in 1919. The popularization of automobiles during the 20th century combined with the opening of Highway 48 in 1937 contributed to a decline of passenger ridership in rural communities like Vandorf that historically relied on rail service up to that point. The station was closed to passengers in 1958 but the building itself remained in place until its demolition in 1967. Until recently, the nearest passenger rail service for residents of Vandorf was in Aurora.

In 2021, Metrolinx extended their Richmond Hill Line to Bloomington Road. The new Bloomington GO Station was built just under 2.5 kilometers south of where Vandorf Station was located, bringing direct rail service back to the community after more than 60 years without.

Condensed Station Info:

Location:	Served By:	Current State:	Date Built:	Date Demolished:
Vandorf Sideroad and Woodbine Avenue	Canadian Northern (1906 – 1919) Canadian National (1919 – 1958)	Demolished	1906	1967