Germany GermanyNordhausen-Wernigerode The 60 km long meter-gauge connection between Nordhausen and Wernigerode was finished in 1899 by a private railway company. Exactly 50 years later the line were put under state's control and subordinated to the Deutsche Reichsbahn. After the fall of the Berlin' wall in autumn 1989 the line was denationalized again in 1993.
From the beginning the passenger traffic dominated. The freight traffic was limited to the short sections north and south outside of the Harz Mountains. In the 80's there was still extensive freight traffic from Nordhausen to Unterberg (crushed stone) and Silberhuette (coal) as well as on the sections Nordhausen - Ilfeld and Wernigerode - Hasserode - Benneckenstein. Mostly the freight trains were hauled by class 99.23-24 (2-10-2T), but in the late 80's more and more replaced by diesel locomotives. In Wernigerode two Henschel-built 0-6-0T's were in service for the local freight traffic to Hasserode.
With the industrial breakdown after the fall of the wall in 1989 the freight traffic decreased rapidly, but survived on a modernized base on the line Nordhausen - Unterberg. Contrary to former times now only diesel locomotives are used for these services. So the following photos can't be made again today: many of the vehicles and parts of the infrastructure are already disappeared…
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| 99.7235-7 shunting at Nordhausen freight yard. | 99.7232-4 leaving Illfeld station. | |
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| 99.7232-4 leaving Eisfelder Talmuehle to Nordhausen. | What a beautiful train! Today such cars are not in service since more than 10 years. | |
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| 99.7233-2 with a timber train at Illfeld. | 99.6101-2 - one of the Henschel' 0-6-0T's at Wernigerode. | |
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| 99.7234-0 shunting at Wernigerode-Hasserode. | Empty streets in Wernigerode - today really impossible! |
