In 1845, St. Catharines, Beamsville, and Grimsby were included on the Great Western Railway’s route between Burlington Bay and Niagara Falls. The Great Western became one of the province’s first major railways, opening its main line from Niagara Falls to Windsor in 1854. Additional lines were added, making the railway an important connection to rail lines in Michigan and New York. The first main station at Grimsby was built in 1855.

In 1882, the railway merged with the Grand Trunk Railway and later became part of the Canadian National Railways system, ultimately becoming VIA Rail. The original station was moved back from the main line in 1900 to accommodate a new station. It was then used as a fruit shipping warehouse for a period, later purchased by Niagara Packers Ltd. The previous owner operated a pottery and craft business, Forks Road Pottery (est. 1997), and an antique store until 2018. The current owner plans to convert the building into a billiard hall and meeting hall.
The original station building is one of the ten oldest buildings still standing in Grimsby. Grimsby grew as an industrial center and became a hub for the fruit-growing industry. Grimsby station was considered the most important station between Hamilton and St. Catharines.
The building holds exceptional historical value for the Town of Grimsby as it is the oldest and only remaining station building in the town. The structure is heavy timber with vertical board and batten siding. Most of the original siding remains today. While most of the original windows and doors have been altered, one window retains both its trim and 12-over-12 sashes. Some original shipping doors also remain.

Ela Architects was retained by the new owner as the design architect for the building’s restoration. The goal is to preserve the building’s original features, restore damaged components with respect to the original design, and upgrade the mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems, along with other code-required work, to make the building functional for its new purpose.

Restoration is defined as the act or process of accurately depicting the form, features, and character of a property as it appeared at a particular period by removing features from other periods and reconstructing missing features from the restoration period. Limited and sensitive upgrading of mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems, along with other code-required work, is appropriate within a restoration project. In the field of historic preservation, building restoration involves accurately revealing, recovering, or representing the state of a historic building as it appeared at a particular period in its history while protecting its heritage value.