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The Società della Ferrovia Sicula Occidentale (Railway Company of Western Sicily) was established in 1878 to construct a railway between
The company was established in Rome under a notarial deed of 3 September 1878 with a paid-up capital of 22 million lire divided into 44,000 shares. It obtained government approval by Royal Decree of 30 September of the same year. it built and inaugurated the first railway connection between the two cities of Palermo and Trapani in 1881. Work began with the opening, on 1 June 1880, of the first stretch from the new Palermo Lolli station (later replaced by
while the three units in the 35-37 group were registered as FS Class 388
Palermo
Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...
, Marsala
Marsala (, local ; la, Lilybaeum) is an Italian town located in the Province of Trapani in the westernmost part of Sicily. Marsala is the most populated town in its province and the fifth in Sicily.
The town is famous for the docking of Gius ...
and Trapani
Trapani ( , ; scn, Tràpani ; lat, Drepanum; grc, Δρέπανον) is a city and municipality (''comune'') on the west coast of Sicily, in Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Trapani. Founded by Elymians, the city is still an impor ...
.
History
The company was established in Rome under a notarial deed of 3 September 1878 with a paid-up capital of 22 million lire divided into 44,000 shares. It obtained government approval by Royal Decree of 30 September of the same year. it built and inaugurated the first railway connection between the two cities of Palermo and Trapani in 1881. Work began with the opening, on 1 June 1880, of the first stretch from the new Palermo Lolli station (later replaced by Palermo Notarbartolo railway station
Palermo Notarbartolo ( it, Stazione di Palermo Notarbartolo) is one of the main railway stations serving the city and ''comune'' of Palermo, capital of the region of Sicily in Italy. Opened in 1974, it is the second most important station in Pale ...
) in Partinico
Partinico ( Sicilian: ''Partinicu'', Ancient Greek: ''Parthenikòn'', Παρθενικόν) is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Palermo, Sicily, southern Italy. It is from Palermo and from Trapani.
Main sights
*Church of ''S ...
. A month later it inaugurated the stretch to the south connecting Trapani to Castelvetrano. In March 1881 it linked Partinico with Castellammare del Golfo and finally, on 5 June 1881, the entire route was completed with the activation of the central section of Castellammare del Golfo - Castelvetrano. In 1882 the company built the link, from Palermo Lolli to the Bivio Madonna dell'Orto, (more recently called Bivio Marittima, for the port of Palermo). This connected to the Calabrian-Sicilian railway but the connection was only used for goods traffic. In 1884, the company was registered in the official list of the Milan stock exchange
Borsa Italiana, based in Milan, is the Italian stock exchange. It manages and organises domestic market, regulating procedures for admission and listing of companies and intermediaries and supervising disclosures for listed companies.italy24.ils ...
.
Locomotives
The company ordered 14steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...
s from Reale Opificio di Pietrarsa. They were delivered between 1880 and 1885 and numbered 1-20. In 1886 Ansaldo
Ansaldo Energia S.p.A. is an Italian power engineering company. It is based in Genoa, Italy. The absorbed parent company, Gio. Ansaldo & C., started in 1853. It was taken over by Leonardo S.p.A. In 2011, Leonardo S.p.A. sold 45% stake in An ...
supplied locomotives 35 and 36 and, between 1891 and 1895, delivered another 6 units similar to the 1-20 group. Subsequently, Ansaldo, in 1901, provided the last unit, number 37, similar to 35 and 36.
Nationalization
The company operated thePalermo
Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...
- Trapani
Trapani ( , ; scn, Tràpani ; lat, Drepanum; grc, Δρέπανον) is a city and municipality (''comune'') on the west coast of Sicily, in Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Trapani. Founded by Elymians, the city is still an impor ...
Railway via Castelvetrano until August 1, 1907, when it was incorporated into the Italian State Railways
Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane S.p.A. ( "Italian Railways of the State"; previously only Ferrovie dello Stato, hence the abbreviation FS) is Italy's national state-owned railway holding company that manages transport, infrastructure, real estate ...
(FS). Of the 1-20 group of locomotives, 16 units were registered as FS Class 385while the three units in the 35-37 group were registered as FS Class 388
References
{{reflist History of rail transport in Italy