Buy MEMOIRES DU RAIL : ROANNE ET SA REGION

Text : Fr

Beyond the framework of Roanne and its region, it is in fact a real plunge into the adventure of the railways from the origins to the present day, that the author invites you in this first volume. Gleaner of Memories, Passer of Memories, the author places this study resolutely "at the level of man", to depict to us the thousand and one facets of the railroad through the many testimonies gathered during three decades. The department of the Loire remains the cradle of rail in France, and the town of Roanne has indeed experienced an early marriage with the railways following the arrival in March 1833 of the line from Andrézieux on the right bank of the river, to Coteau in Beaujolais. This is a saga that has lasted for two centuries, first under the colours of the PLM (Paris to Lyon and the Mediterranean), then of the SNCF after 1937.

Let's travel together on the 1200 km of the Roanne star, from St-Etienne to Nevers, from Lyon to Clermont-Ferrand. Let's follow the railway supporting the war effort in 1914-1918, before being caught up in the turmoil of the Second World War and the Occupation. There are often unpublished pages on the Battle of the Railways, followed by the Battle for the Reconstruction of the Country. The study of the motor equipment focuses on the Mikado type locomotives, the real spearhead of the Roanne cavalry, with a special focus on the American 141R. We also follow the career of the Berliet railcars, of which Roanne was the national exclusive from 1937 to 1966.

Volume 2 will deal with the insertion of the railways into the urban space, the evolution of train driving with the clash of cultures between steam and diesel, the "railwaymen's ethnic group", as well as the recent changes in the SNCF. Far from being limited to railway enthusiasts, this book will be of interest to all history lovers, but also to readers who wish to understand their heritage through a very specific reading.

A colourful text enhanced by an iconography of around 400 photos, plans and archive documents in a book of more than 288 pages.