Mulhouse rail museum - La Cité du Train (by kerouac2)

[Deleted]

On a recent trip, I was determined to visit the train museum of Mulhouse, the largest in Europe in size. (The British National Rail Museum in York receives more visitors.) It first opened in 1976 and has been expanded and reorganised over the years. It is currently managed by the same authority that operates the Cité de l'Automobile, also in Mulhouse.

I was looking at Wikipedia to see how many train museums there are in the world, and it is really amazing. I'm sure that one reason is that trains fascinate people on many levels -- the locomotives are marvels of engineering, the passenger cars evoke all sorts of memories in lots of people, and mythical equipment like the Orient Express is stuff of which dreams of travel are made. And of course, rail travel has remained extremely popular in many parts of the world while withering away or disappearing in other areas, which gives food for thought. Luckily, rail transportation is much more ecological than air travel, so trains are beginning to make a comeback in certain places. Basically, when the two modes of transporation are in competition, the carbon footprint of an airplane is 300 times more than that of a train with by far the worst moments being takeoff and landing.

Anyway, back to the Cité du Train. It should be mentioned that 15 or so locomotives and passenger cars from the Mulhouse collection are currently on display in Paris at the free Grand Train event that runs until the middle of October. It took 18 days and 6 convoys to bring these items from Mulhouse.

The Cité du Train is obviously in a huge old rail maintenance centre. Even though the tram goes there, there is a bit of walking to get to the old industrial zone.





The exhibition starts in a huge darkened hangar to put one in the ambience of early rail trips.







Most of the cars cannot be entered, but there are platforms to be able to see through the windows of the various classes.





If they didn't show everything, people would ask questions.





The original cars were not probably actually equipped with video screens. The videos showed archived news reports and documentaries as well as scenes from famous movies.



People with money were really pampered.

[Deleted]

This is one of the first locomotives designed for ploughing through snow covered areas, particularly in the Alps.



just when things were getting fun...







The plating became much thicker on a lot of trains.





This camouflage doesn't look very effective at ground level, but I'm sure it was quite good when (not) seen from a plane full of bombs.





They really built such pretty things. No wonder that so many engineers were in love with their locomotives.











"water dangerous for consumption and improper for any bodily use"



Anyone tempted by 4th class?





Better to pay a bit more...

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A brief interlude with the wonderful Sprague-Thomson Paris metro cars. This is how the metro looked when I was young. And some of these trains ran until the 1980's!











Back to long distance trains as 2nd class got a bit more comfortable...



I'm sure I'm not the only person who did not regret the disappearance of compartments when travelling with complete strangers.



There were of course many friendly encounters, though, and people freely shared their provisions.



There was actually a roof platform where people could sit. Not always a good idea in the days of steam engines.



Ah, sleeper cars. Who doesn't love them?









I wish I had eaten in more dining cars. The last one where I had a meal was the night train from Nairobi to Mombasa.







I would probably be choking on cigar smoke.



These displays were really cool, because scenery was whizzing by on screens in back.





In the next car, people made do with what they had.

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The next section showed nuts and bolts and many of the technological developments.













There was even a maintenance trench into which you could descend to see all of the stuff underneath a train.







Then there was a display of the very first trains to ever run.







Some were more playful than others.



Then they started looking a lot more serious.





This is obviously a wine tanker car.

[Deleted]

I am always amazed at how they used to allow huge advertising in inappropriate places on public buildings.



Before the SNCF consolidated everything, there were numerous private train companies in France.

















The upper level was not at all desirable due to all of the smoke from the steam locomotives.



"Do not allow children to play with the latch." -- unless you want to get rid of them.







I bet that groups from technical high schools and institutes can spend an hour in front of something like this.









Bugatti designed not only cars but also trains.







Another train I have ridden, now part of the RER B commuter line in Paris.

[bixaorellana]

Thoroughly enjoyable, fascinating, and even exhilarating! You really capture all the glamor, the grit, the endless logistics and the danger of trains.

Starting from the bottom, the last three show how inspired engineers and designers are by trains. And those colors -- gorgeous. Further up, thanks for the details and close-ups, which drive home the utility of trains. That really made me think about the forms of conveyance they replaced and the ingenuity necessary to adapt trains to so many different uses. Great noise video, with that sound that makes you imagine being off and away on the iron chariot.

The last time I ever slept on trains was in the early 70s -- old US rolling stock kept beautifully maintained in Mexico. That was also the last time for eating in dining cars -- unfortunately "continental" food, the blandest thing you can eat in Mexico.

Sept 4, 2016 19:13:57 GMT kerouac2 said:

They really built such pretty things. No wonder that so many engineers were in love with their locomotives.

Perfectly put & perfectly illustrated!

Chastening views of the trains during wartime and shameful that soldiers were relegated to crap class.

Finally, I was thrilled to read that I got to see those visiting locomotives and cars.

[fumobici]

I'm really enjoying this and I'm certain I'd fall in love with this museum, gearhead that I am. This place must be @#$%ing huge! I'm still wondering about the locomotive lying on its side. Did you go see the ex-Schlumpf car collection too? I've always wanted to see that, even since before it was open to the public.

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Here is a hospital car from the war.









Here is a government conference table, reminding one that these trips used to last the entire day without even crossing a border.

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When the SNCF sold their old headquarters next to Saint Lazare in Paris, it bothered me for some reason. Now it is has been transformed into luxury flats.



The United States and Canada helped France to put back together its heavily damaged rail system after the war of 1939-1945.





These are the trains of my childhood. There were always 4 black & white photographs of things in France in each compartment.













This car was used to convey liquid steel between the blast furnace site and the steelworks.

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Once Europe was back on its feet and modernising at great speed, the glorious epoch of the Trans Europ Express began.











The bar car was equipped with a full sized café counter.



Whizzing around Europ on the TEE was cool... for people who could afford these special trains.







The Corail trains, later renamed Téoz, replaced the army green trains with compartments.



The TGV was on the way.

[htmb]

This looks like a wonderful report. Unfortunately, I've been without wifi for days and am confined to the use of a cellphone. I'm looking forward to eventually seeing these photos on a bigger screen.

I had no idea the trains we saw in Paris at Le Grand Train had been transported from Mulhouse. Interesting.

This rail museum must be huge. It certainly looks to be well laid out.

[Deleted]

Just a few more images to wrap this up.









This was the most famous French train of the 20th century, the night train from Paris to Marseille and Nice.





Back outside before I left...

I didn't come anywhere close to photographing everything that was in the museum so if anybody goes there after seeing this report, there will still be quite a few surprises left.

[bixaorellana]

I love the close shots of all that beautifully tooled machinery. Well, everything you've added since my last comment is as absorbing a the first part. I have to say how much I admire the perfect time sequence of your presentation. Usually when I'm in a museum, I get so distracted by looking at everything that I can't create a cohesive story afterward. No such problem here!

The map of the TEE is fascinating. There are only two long straight shots on it and it's mind-boggling to think of the complexity of planning and decisions that had to be made to create those routes.

pee ess ~ we simul-posted, so I just saw your wrap-up, which is perfect. The video helps give more of an idea of the experience. I loved that they used real sounds on the videos instead of music or something. You got some great art shots in that last post, too.

What's the deal on the lion?

[Deleted]

Thanks to everyone for the nice comments. I know nothing about the lion, Bixa. I found another small handful of photos from the Cité du Train.

some old cryptic signs that everyone in France has seen along the tracks over the years







To create the museum, they just kept a bunch of maintenance sheds, all of which are huge.



Beer is a major industry of the region, so here is a boxcar for transporting the local beer.





And that's all for this time...

[bjd]

Great pics of the museum and the trains. I remember when the first TGV line opened in 1981 or 1982, I was coming home after a trip to Canada. To get to Besançon, I had to take a train from Paris to Dijon and then change for Besançon, while the TGV continued to Lyon. There was a Swedish guy sitting beside me in the TGV who had come all the way from Sweden just to take one of the first high-speed lines. He sat there just thrilled throughout the ride.

[htmb]

Looking over this report again, now on a larger screen, I can see so much more detail than before, This is a wonderful thread and is sure to entice anyone who is considering a visit.

[gabriele]

This is wonderful beyond words. Would you mind if I post a link to this on Thorn Tree? It's too good not to be shared. thank you

[Deleted]

No problem, Gabriele. I know that lots of people around the world want to get grease on their minds.

[Deleted]

Here is what the former SNCF headquarters (2nd photo in reply #8) looks like now.

[tod2]

What an incredible, fascinating, awe-inspiring, fabulous place .....I could go on and on about this sensational museum. I now wish we had picked up our Switzerland tour there instead of in Paris. Oh well that is an excuse to train it back to Mulhouse in a year or so and check it out for ourselves.
You have done a grand job with the photos Kerouac - beautiful!

[mickthecactus]

Magnificent report, magnificent museum.

I love train travel but don't do a lot of it these days. In my youth I used to go to Switzerland and Italy by train and going through Switzerland at night was absolutely magical.

Last decent journey I did was Eurostar to Le Touquet.

[kerouac2]

I need to return to Mulhouse.

[tod2]

We loved Mulhouse and what we experienced there, but if we were to return what else can we experience? Done the Motor Museum - The Train Museum, The Fabric Museum. The one thing we found lacking were restaurants. We ate in the Mercure twice and I never want to eat a Micro waved meal again in a hotel. I quite understand the profitable way they have to run things and the weary traveller is only too pleased to get something to eat without going more that 10metres.

[mickthecactus]

Just looking through this again. What a great report.

[kerouac2]

Thanks. But I still need to go to the even bigger automobile museum of Mulhouse one of these days. The problem is that I have very little interest in automobiles, but I know that the visit will be worth it.

I have pictures for the electricity museum in Mulhouse, but I never posted a report about it. Maybe I should hunt up the photos some day.