Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

HistoRail, the railway museum, was founded in 1987 in Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat (New Aquitaine) in the context of the modernization of the TER Limousin network by SNCF. The founding association has recovered railway equipment donated by the SNCF, including items related to the operation of local lines such as pantographs, driving simulators or an Optical Control Board (OTC) from the Saint-Sulpice-Laurière station. The museum, inaugurated on 2 July 1988 by Claude Bolling – its honorary president – illustrates the technical evolution of railways, from steam to diesel, through various collections: track maintenance tools, signals, or even a Moyse 5Ta locotractor symbolizing the energy transition of the 1960s.

The museum revolves around two indoor rooms (500 m2) and an outdoor space (300 m2). The first room presents concrete elements of the rail journey, such as a historic ticket office in Paris-Orléans or a SNCF regulator. The second, called "Traversothèque", offers a panorama of the ties, rails and tools used by SNCF agents, created thanks to workshops by Bretenoux-Biars and Brive-la-Gaillarde. Outside, emblematic objects – hydraulic cranes, crossing barriers, draisines – complete the collection, while miniature networks (ho, IIm, 0 and G ladders) reconstruct local railway scenes, such as the Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat station or the Haute-Vienne Departmental Railways.

The museum is part of a process of valorizing the Limousin railway heritage, actively participating in national events (Night of museums, Heritage Days) and organizing each year the Festival of the Miniature Train. A temporary exhibition in 2018, marked by the visit of an American Consul, commemorated the centenary of the First World War. HistoRail also collaborates with specialized media such as La Vie du Rail and local authors, highlighting its roots in regional history and its role in preserving the memory of the railways.

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