World War One Sites - The NETWORLD Database

The old train "Ćiro" in Travnik, Bosnia and Herzegovina

After the formation of the Austro-Hungarian rule in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Travnik became an important economic and traffic centre. The route of the narrow-gauge railroad track Lašva-Travnik was opened on 26/10/1893, and in 1895 the railway route Donji Vakuf - Bugojno – Jajce that ran over the Komar saddle was built. A special locomotive with cog wheels was acquired for this section. This steam engine is the only surviving example of the cog wheeled locomotive with serial number 97-036 constructed according to Abt system (toothed rack or cogwheels) in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Narrow-gauge steam locomotive 760 mm has a production label of Flor 2556. There is one closed and one open railway carriage attached to it. The length of the compositions with locomotive is 28.00 m, width 2.50 m. The length of the rails amounts to 32 m.

From a total number of 38 steam locomotives that were produced in the locomotive factory in Vienna, in addition to this locomotive, three more samples were preserved and jealously treasured in the technical museum in Munich (Germany), museum in Ljubljana (Slovenia) and private museum in Froy (Austria).

The steam train is popularly known as "Ćiro".

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Travnik

Type of WWI-heritage

  • Non-Military Site of World War One Relevance

Dimensions

The length of the compositions with locomotive is 28.00 m, width 2.50 m. The length of the rails amounts to 32 m.

State of repair/preservation

In the year 2012 the Regional Museum of Travnik initiated and coordinated the project of rescue and conservation of the steam train "Ćiro" in order to fully protect and save from decay this rare monument of engineering, and to finally present it in the way it deserves.

The process of transportation, conservation, restoration of the locomotive, manufacturing replicas of the missing parts as well as the restoration of the railway carriages was done in Banovići, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Historical WWI Context

During the period of the First World War, the old train "Ćiro" was used on daily basis and represented the most important traffic link from Travnik to the rest of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Travnik was behind the front lines and was not exposed to direct combat. The town was a military garrison of the Austro-Hungarian army and the old train was used for transportation of soldiers and officers, wounded soldiers, while the military equipment, weapons and ammunition were brought in and dispatched. The old train also brought civilians to Travnik, and with them came the news from the fronts, new political ideas, information about social events in the rest of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and other European countries.

On 22nd March 1915, the old train brought a young poet Ivo Andric to his hometown, the winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1961. After spending time in prison in Maribor (Slovenia) for the connection with the "Young Bosnia" movement and Gavrilo Princip who was the perpetrator of the assassination in Sarajevo in 1914, the Austro-Hungarian justice system ordered Andrić the punishment of house arrest in Travnik. Ivo Andrić‘s several month stay in Ovčarevo, a village near Travnik, left a significant impact on his literary work. It was there that he wrote the parts of his first book, Ex Ponto, and was inspired by historical motifs from Travnik‘s past which was later recorded in his novels and short stories.

On 22nd March 2015, on the 100th anniversary of Ivo Andrić’s arrival to Travnik, the Museum produced a dedicated street event, "A son without a father, a mother without a husband," which took place in the steam train composition. The event included actors, musicians, members of cultural clubs, etc.

State of legal protection

It is protected, presented and managed by the: Decree with legal force on institutions, Sarajevo, 1993, and Law on Culture of the Central Bosnia Canton, Federation of BiH.

Owner

The constructional/architectural World War One heritage is owned and managed by the Regional Museum of Travnik.

Kind of cultural use of WWI

- More information available at: www.tzsbk.com

- muzejtravnik.ba/en/

Opening

No data.

Entrance Fee

No data.

Information regarding cities, villages, other touristic attractions (non-WWI) nearby

No data.

Accomodation

No data.

Public Transport

No data.

Further information sources

- More information available at: muzejtravnik.ba/en/parni-voz-ciro/

 

Museums Private Collections

The Historical Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo

Location

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