Commemoration
The Grand Trunk was incorporated in 1853 to run from Sarnia to Portland, Maine. Although it took over existing lines, new ones had to be built, including sections of the key Toronto to Montreal line completed by the noted English engineering firm of Peto, Brassey, Jackson and Betts in 1856. The Prescott station, built about 1855, is a typical example of the smaller stations erected by this firm for the Grand Trunk Railway. Influenced by English designs, the station is an enduring monument to early Canadian railway enterprise.
Background
This is a First Class A Type station building which was a standard design used on this line. It was one of nine built at the same time. The others were in Georgetown, Napanee, Belleville, Port Hope, St. Marys Junction, Brighton, Kingston, and Ernestown.
These similar buildings in widespread towns are a symbol of how the disparate communities were becoming more integrated into a provincial and then national economy.