Hyrynsalmi-Kuusamo Line
| Hyrynsalmi–Kuusamo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Line length | 178 km (111 mi) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Track gauge | 750 mm (2 ft 5+1⁄2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Hyrynsalmi–Kuusamo railway line was built by the German Wehrmacht in the middle of Finland near the Soviet border.
History
After Hyrynsalmi got a railway connection in 1939, the Wehrmacht tried to reach the city of Kuusamo 178 km away during World War II. A Heeresfeldbahn was built with the track gauge of 750 mm. Construction began on 1 July, 1942. Operations started on September 3, 1942.
Stations included Vääkiö in Suomussalmi, Korvu and Isokumpu in Taivalkoski and Sänkikangas in Kuusamo, with the control center in Hyrynsalmi. Close to 3,000 people worked to build the line, mostly Russian prisoners of war along with forced laborers from Poland.[1] Working conditions were poor and discipline harsh. Many died from starvation, punishment, and exposure to the elements.[2][3]
Just two years later, with the advance of the Soviet Army, operations had to be closed again. The Germans destroyed military installations, private property, and other buildings to keep them from being used by the Finns and Soviets, as well as the railway itself. They also burned villages situated along the railroad during their retreat. After World War II was over, the Soviets demanded that the Finns remove the remaining tracks. Locals have referred to the line as the "Railroad of Death".[4]
A Finnish 1,524 mm (5 ft) broad gauge line between Hyrynsalmi and Taivalkoski opened in 1961, which mostly shared the old route as far as Korvua. The line was closed in 2005.[5]
Gallery
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Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-107-1311-33, Nordeuropa, Feldbahn im Schnee, Lokomotive
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Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-107-1312-20, Nordeuropa, Feldbahn im Schnee
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Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-107-1311-24, Nordeuropa, Feldbahn im Schnee, Lokomotive
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Plaque in memorial for victims of Hyrynsalmi – Kuusamo trench railway line in Taivalkoski, Finland.
References
- ^ https://kenttarata-feldbahn.weebly.com/
- ^ https://cycleadvisor.org/en/objects/40
- ^ https://web.archive.org/web/20160304141823/http://www.taivalkoski.fi/Resource.phx/sivut/sivut-taivalkoski/matkailu/kayntikohteita/index.htx?locale=fi_FI
- ^ Seitsonen, Oula; Lundemo, Mari (November 2021). "Railroad of Death: History and Archaeology of the German-built Second World War Hyrynsalmi-Kuusamo Railway 1942-1944". Tekniikan Waiheita. 39 (3). Finnish History of Technology Society: 37. doi:10.33355/tw.103303.
- ^ Iltanen, Jussi (2009). Radan varrella: Suomen rautatieliikennepaikat (in Finnish) (2nd ed.). Helsinki: Karttakeskus. pp. 371–375. ISBN 978-951-593-214-3.
Literature
- Lars Westerlund: Saksan vankileirit Suomessa ja raja-alueilla 1941-1944 , Helsinki: Tammi, 2008, ISBN 978-951314277-3.
- DVD "Kuolemanrata". A film by Timo Koivisto, Nimbus-Filmi, 1999.