Germany’s rail history started modestly: the country’s first line, which ran between Nuremberg and Fürth and opened in 1835, was just 6 km long. The “Adler” – the locomotive imported from Britain to operate the line – introduced a new means of travel to an astonished public: fast and comfortable, affordable for all and extremely profitable for the railway pioneers. It was from here that the triumphant advance of the railway began, transforming society, landscapes and cities from the ground up and catapulting Germany from an agrarian society into the industrial age. As the world entered the 20th century, this new transport system entered its golden era, an age of magnificent station buildings and powerful steam locomotives. A wealth of fascinating original objects and models vividly illustrate this development. This epoch came to an end with the First World War, whose brutal battles with hundreds of thousands of casualties were enabled not least by the new means of mass transport that the railway provided.

The large model railroad layout in the DB Museum Nuremberg dates from the 1960s, and over 500 meters of track were laid for it. This corresponds to the length of 5 soccer fields.

DB Museum has departments in Halle, Koblenz and Nuremberg