The story of what is arguably the most successful Ontario soccer team of all time sttarts in 1896, with the creation of the Dominion Power and Transmission Company. This brought cheap and efficient hydroelectric power to Hamilton, a feat that saw it dubbed, in a 1906 promotional brochure, "The Electric City."

This attracted the attention of the Westinghouse Electric, who set up their first manufactory outside of the United States in Hamilton in 1897, producing air-brakes for the nascent rail industry. As is so often the case with factories and heavy industry, sports teams sprang up around them. Hamilton Westinghouse was certainly a product of this phenomenon.

The team didn't wait long to start winning.

Their first Hamilton Spectator Cup came in 1907, the first of seven and a half they would win over the years.

This dominance continued into other competitions, as they delivered the Electric City its first Ontario Cup, winning the competition in 1911, beating Toronto Baracas 3-2 in both games. They repeated in 1912, 1916 and 1925.

1920 was likely the greatest year for Westinghouse, as they won an astounding treble.

The Hamilton Spectator cup was augmented with an Ontario Cup win, 3-2 over Toronto Willys Overland. They took this momentum into the Connaught Cup final, beating Winnipeg Brittania over the course of two games to become national champions and complete their trophy hat-trick.

The Second World War did much to gut the Ontario soccer infrastructure, but Westinghouse were among the first to get back on their feet and get the ball rolling again.

An old player by the name of Matt Dunn was tasked with pulling together a team from Hamilton to compete in the brand new National Soccer League.

He found a group of players who had talent but no equipment and no money, so he petitioned their employer, Westinghouse, who happily donated money towards the team, resurrecting the great name of Hamilton Westinghouse Soccer.

They won the Western Division championship in 1948, before being beaten by Eastern Champion (and soon to be hall-of-fame organization) Montreal Carsteel in the final.

In 1949, they fared better, winning their sixth and final Ontario Cup and finding themselves in another Challenge Trophy series.

They played Vancouver North Shore in Calgary, losing the first game before claiming the second to even the series.

Canadian press writer Ken Metheral penned this on the game:

'Hamilton Westinghouse's fast, aggressive 11 ran North Vancouver's vaunted North Shore club into the ground...Hamilton's light forward line took command of the play from the opening whistle and never appeared close to defeat ... They tackled their heavier opponents with a zest that brought roars of approval from the non-partisan crowd... Only the spectacular play of goalie Frank Ashdown held Hamilton from running up the lopsided score.' 

The third and final game featured a controversial handball decision. Vancouver scored from the penalty and saw the game out 2-0 to win the title.

Westinghouse went on to win the National Soccer League playoffs in 1950 and the last trophy put into the cabinet was the 1955 Hamilton Spectator cup, before the team started to recede into the general soccer milieu of the Hamilton area.

Hamilton Westinghouse Fast Facts

• Factory team for the Westinghouse Electric Company.
• Won Ontario Cups in 1911 (Hamilton's first Provincial title), 1912, 1916, 1920, 1925, 1949
• Hamilton Spectator Cup in 1907, 1908, 1909, 1911, 1912, 1916, 1920, 1955
• National Soccer League Winners in 1950
• Won the National Championship (Connaught Cup) in 1920
• Final of the Challenge Cup in 1949, beaten by Vancouver North Shore in three games.