Deutschland - Bahnpostmuseum
Germany - Museum of Travelling
Post Office (TPO)
Where all over the world railways run, we saw almost always
a mail service on rail. Mail by rail, sorting or carrying by mail clerks in special mail cars. In Germany we used the term Bahnpost. Nearly 150 years german mail cars ran through the landscapes (and occupied territories). In May 1997 we experienced the end of this service in Germany. But the remembrance of postal history and mail by rail is still alive and well known. We play a great part in contributing.
We would like to introduce ourselves
♦ as a Philatelic Society since 1973, called Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Bahnpost-Federal Study Group of Bahnpost, working in all useful facts in Bahnpost History and Philately of Germany and abroad,
together with:
♦ a Bahnpostmuseum-TPO Museum, established in 1997.
We present historical mail cars available to the public.
We are a registered and charitable Society (because the Museum be regarded as a cultural assets).
The shown exhibits of mail cars are unique in the whole Republic. They offers a (postal) history to touch in
a authentic way. For collectors of Bahnpost postmarks they are a chance of lifetime to connect the hobby of philately with the practice in graphically way.
The Museum situated at a likable Railway Museum in a small town named „Losheim am See“ in the country of Saarland, in the Southwest of Germany, near the border to France and Luxembourg.
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Description of our three historical mail cars
In general. All waggons are restored as insight so outsight like the original delivery condition and with all the original markings outside. Many members of the Society worked in a honorary way. Countless hours. An outstanding achievement. Twice the outside coating is green, once blue-beige. Two waggons are licensed to run on rails of Deutsche Bahn, par example for special trips with historical trains by steam locos.
The interior of all mail cars are equipped like in the former Bahnpost Service (daily duty). It is such a real impression when you enter the waggons, that former mail cleks as visitors want change their clothes for start working immediately.
You can have inside a look upon, as if the mail car ran actually on route. Most of the postal utensils are showing, from at home and abroad. Sure, partially prepared, but „damned authentic“:
all sorts of postings,
letters small and long,
as ordinary, registered, insured, special delivery mail,
sorted in the pigeon holes, as bundles into the bags,
bags, closed with special bag lables, written thereon the directions they were dis-patched,
packets, parcels, newspapers,
Bahnpost postmark as oval shape,
show-cases with historical articles about Bahnpost national and international,
many photos about the theme Bahnpost in everyday life.
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Summary
We hope, in conclusion, the representation of our Bahnpost Museum of the Society has become very interesting. We are proud of these, the only one this kind in Germany.
January 2015
Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Bahnpost, Deutschland
Federal Study Group of Bahnpost, Germany
email:
internet:
Technical data
► 1st mail car
mail car green two-axled, Nr. 11 178-3, date built 1954 by Waggonfabrik Talbot in Aachen, price about 97.000 Deutsche Mark, in quantity of 104 vehicles, with a length of 14 meters, brought into service on January 1955, in stock of the Post Offices Oberhausen and Saarbrücken, took out of service in February 1981, in possession of the Society since 2013, he has a sorting room with pigeon holes, a second room for stow the loading of bags and packets, equipment of stove and steam heating, mostly he ran on branch-lines, about 174.000 kilometers in service, he is furnished as a Bahnpost on route Trier-Koblenz along the Mosel River.
We fitted out these mail car as a permanent base, a lively meeting-place, for a pleasurely get-together, for guests and members.
► 2nd mail car
mail car green four-axled, Nr. 43 131-3, date built 1956 by Maschinenfabrik in Esslingen, price about 200.000 Deutsche Mark, in quantity of 72 vehicles, with a length of 26 meters, brought into service on February 1957, equipment of stove and steam heating, in stock of the Post Offices Frankfurt (Main), Konstanz, Darmstadt and Köln (Rhein), took out of service in June 1991, he ran about 1,7 million kilometers in service, in possession of the Society since May 1997, in 2003 the mail car had a general inspection, ready to start again for special trips around the Republic.
You see the interior with sorting room and pigeon holes,
a loading room to stow bags, in the middle a room to sort mail and letters as bundles in opened bags hanging in
a suspension (rack), with all necessary utensils and documents the mail car show the original Service of Bahnpost Frankfurt (Main)-Basel in Switzerland, sorting the mail for the country Baden in Southwest Germany, many postal courses for France, Italy and Switzerland. At times the Bahnpost Service (Office) Frankfurt (Main) has had in 26 meter-mail cars (in front and behind a sorting room) up to 25 working mail clerks on the mainline Basel-Frankfurt along the Rhein River.
► 3rd mail car
mail car blue-beige four-axled, Nr. 33 045-8, date built 1967 by Hansa-Waggonbau Bremen, price about 320.000 Deutsche Mark, in quantity of 56 vehicles, with a length of 26 meters, brought into service January 1968, equipment of oil heating, in stock of the Post Offices München, Köln (Rhein), took out of service 1995, in possession of the Society since
January 1997.
You see the interior with sorting and loading room, pigeon holes, opened bags hanging in a suspension in the middle part, the mail car show the original service of Bahnpost Dortmund-München, with all necessary utensils and documents, for sorting
mail to the South of Bavaria.
