First known as the Toronto, Simcoe and Huron Railway, and then the Ontario, Simcoe and Huron Railway, the aim was to provide a portage route from the upper Great Lakes at Collingwood to Toronto. The plan for the railway was largely executed by Frederick Chase Capreol who was fired as manager of the company the day before the ground broke. Financial difficulties and a government bailout led to a reorganization of the company as the Northern Railway of Canada in 1859. The line saw three major expansions; North Grey Railway extended the original mainline to Meaford, the North Simcoe Railway ran to the port town of Penetanguishene, and the Muskoka Branch ran northeast to Gravenhurst. This last expansion would be the starting point for the Northern and Pacific Junction Railway, connecting to the Canadian Pacific Railway mainline outside of North Bay. In 1887, the Grand Trunk Railway (GTR) gained a controlling interest, and the takeover was formalized in January 1888.