The Cité du Train (English: ''City of the Train'' or ''Train City''), situated in

Mulhouse Mulhouse (; ; Alsatian language, Alsatian: ''Mìlhüsa'' ; , meaning "Mill (grinding), mill house") is a France, French city of the European Collectivity of Alsace (Haut-Rhin department, in the Grand Est region of France). It is near the Fran ...

, France, is one of the ten largest railway museums in the world. It is the successor to the ''Musée Français du Chemin de Fer'' (French National Railway Museum), the organisation responsible for the conservation of major historical

SNCF The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (, , SNCF ) is France's national State-owned enterprise, state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the Rail transport in France, country's national rail traffic along with th ...

railway equipment.

History

In 1961, Mulhouse City Council offered land in Dornach to allow the SNCF to present their historical rolling stock, representative of the company's history. In 1971, the first

locomotive A locomotive is a rail transport, rail vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. Traditionally, locomotives pulled trains from the front. However, Push–pull train, push–pull operation has become common, and in the pursuit for ...

s were provisionally placed in the old engine shed, Mulhouse-Nord. A second site nearby was opened to the public in 1983 at which stage the museum received 240,000 visitors a year. As attendance declined, it was decided to transfer the collection to the group ''Culture Espaces'', which was already in charge of the Cité de l'automobile (French national automobile museum) since 1999. The French national, regional and departmental governments, as well as the City of Mulhouse, financed a renovation at a total cost of 8.6 million

euro The euro (currency symbol, symbol: euro sign, €; ISO 4217, currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the ...

s. The

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

François Seigneur designed an exhibition display named ''Le siècle d'or du chemin de fer'' (The golden century of railway), tracing historical events from 1860 to 1940, in a new hall nearly 6,000 square metres with 25 additional exhibits, bringing the total number in the museum to 103. In semi-darkness, the visitor may discover several sections of similar technology in display cabinets, with mannequins that light up as the visitor approaches, including poorer and richer aspects of railway life. In the old renovated building, the emphasis is mostly placed on the instructional aspect of technology, explaining the mechanisms powering steam, diesel and electric locomotives and their development. It is possible to go inside a locomotive to admire its inner workings. Between the two buildings is an outdoor court complete with a restaurant which railway elements throughout as well as a themed rooms to complete the experience. In the 2020s, the museum covers a floor area of , which includes an exhibition space of , making it one of the largest museums in the world.

References

External links

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City of Mulhouse – Museum Information
{{DEFAULTSORT:Musee Francais Du Chemin De Fer Chemin de Fer National railway museums Museums in Haut-Rhin Buildings and structures in Mulhouse Railway museums in France