Intro

The why and wherefore

Grafenwalde - a former privatbahn located in a quiet corner of the northern edge of the Thuringia Forest in the mid-1960s

Courtesy Peter Koenig

Fiction and fact merge

Fact

The line to Grafenwalde is based on an amalgam of other lines on the northern edge of the Thüringer Wald. 

 Fiction

The Grafenwalder Privatbahn AG, was a railway line in the district of Saalfeld-Rudolstadt in Thuringia, which connected the town of Grafenwald to the railway network. The 4,60km long railway line began about 2.5 kilometers west of Rottenbach at the Köditzberg separation station and led from there through the valley of the valley to the west via the stop Unterköditz to Grafenwalde, where it ended on the southeastern outskirts of the town.

The 15.5t limit on the line could support nothing larger than a BR64,  the original locomotive was a T3 89 5901, in 1921 it was supplemented by a T9.3 91 1627 and later a V15 LKM diesel which was in use until the passenger service was discontinued. 

The line became part of the DR in 1949, revenue began to decline in the 1960s and in 1976, the closure of the line was again considered, and track maintenance was reduced to a minimum. In 1988 the passenger service ceased and Grafenwalde was used only to transport timber, until this ceased in 1995. Today, it is no longer served by rail and the track has been lifted, only the Preußisch station building remains, now a private residence.