Museum
The Exhibition Room – Wolsztyn’s Steam Locomotive Shed Museum
An idea of founding the museum and collecting the exhibits arose approximately around 1990 when local daily services to Sulechów and Nowa Sól were getting closed. Then, all equipment left on closed railway stations, was brought on hand cars to Wolsztyn’s shed as to avoid being scrapped. The museum got the first exhibits, which were chosen to be placed in one room to be available for more and more visitors and railway technology lovers. Thanks to the help of the then authorities of Western Poznań District Railway Authorities the building of the former Railway Fire Station, on the other side of the rail tracks and the shed, was adapted for that purpose. The money came from the shed’s entrance and from the “retro” services. The whole upper floor of the above building (which still exists and where the Vehicles Checking Station is placed now) was adopted and all, modest at that time number of exhibits and the TT scale diorama, were exposed. Later, because of a diminishing number of the shed’s workers, it was decided to administer out-of-use areas of the changing rooms and the wash-rooms of the present locomotive shed’s hostel. The area was rebuilt, leaving partition walls on their places. As the number of exhibits was growing, the first and after that, the second exhibition room was organized.
The Collection
At first, the collection was presented rather chaotically. Later, it was systematized. Practically, it shows the whole profile of the railway history in that region. There you may see the exhibits of motion and trade services (the ticket office and stationmaster’s quarters), traction services (the shed’s equipment, the elements of steam locos’ devices, the documents, the shed’s offices’ stamps), communication devices ( switchboards, telephones), road services ( railway traffic safety devices – level crossing devices, switchboards, railway systems, lamps, pointers etc.) Many museum pieces were gained from private collections and donations of retired railway workers.
More interesting showpieces are:
- The original, preserved plan of the steam shed’s extension – the four-stand roundhouse on the eight-stand roundhouse – approved in 1909 by the Royal Prussian Railway Directorate.
- The original French postcard from 1937 brought out on the occasion of the International Exhibition, showing awarded Grand Prix prize the Polish steam engine Pm36-1.
- Speedometers of various makes and various types used in steam engines.
- A collection of rail signal lanterns.
- A collection of stamples from closed railway stations around Wolsztyn.
- A collection of Prussian railway documents, such as official telegrams, carriage offices’ documentation, and a carriage register dated from 1887.