The National Railway Museum is a

railway museum A railway museum is a museum that explores the history of all aspects of rail related transportation, including: locomotives ( steam, diesel, and electric), railway cars, trams, and railway signalling equipment. They may also operate historic e ...

Freetown Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, educational and p ...

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...

. The museum was opened in 2005.

History

The

Sierra Leone Government Railway :''This article is part of the history of rail transport by country series'' The Sierra Leone Government Railway operated in Sierra Leone from 1897 to 1974. It was unusual in that it formed a national railway system constructed solely to a Narrow ...

closed in 1974. A collection of rolling stock was retained at the former railway workshops to form a museum. Locos included one of the 4-8-2+2-8-4 Garratts, a Hunslet tank, and a couple of the diesel locos. Several coaches were also kept, including the Governor's coach, and a coach specially prepared for the visit of

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

in 1961. Through the years of civil strife and war this collection disappeared from sight and it was feared it had been destroyed. However the collection survived despite the workshops being used as a centre for displaced persons. Following the initiative of a British army officer,

Colonel Steve Davies Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

, restoration of the equipment commenced in 2004. The former President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Alhaji Dr.

Ahmad Tejan Kabbah Alhaji Ahmad Tejan Kabbah (February 16, 1932 – March 13, 2014) was a Sierra Leonean politician who served twice as the 3rd President of Sierra Leone, from 1996 to 1997 and again from 1998 to 2007. An economist and attorney by profession, Ka ...

, visited the workshops site and indicated his support for preserving the railway heritage of Sierra Leone and opening the museum. The Sierra Leone National Railway Museum opened in Cline Town in 2005.

The museum

The museum is open 10am-4pm Monday to Saturday. The museum is supported by Friends of the Sierra Leone National Railway Museum, based in the UK. In addition to the various preserved locomotives and carriages, there are numerous displays of old photographs, tickets, maps and time tables. Entry to the museum is free, however, visitors are encouraged to make a donation towards its upkeep.Official schedule of SLNRM
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References

External links

* {{Authority control Museums established in 2005 Museums in Sierra Leone National railway museums