* * *
Line No. 2b: Halle to Magdeburg
The Copper Track
We now have two track-laying alternatives. The direct way to Magdeburg is shorter only 53 miles but must cross the Saale twice, once in Halle and again in Bernburg. The other route, which is 67 miles long, could be called the copper track because it makes a detour to the mining area west of Halle while going around a bend in the Saale. It is the preferred path because it give us access to an important industrial area, and allows us to avoid building two bridges and laying our line over a lot of muddy ground at the price of just 14 extra miles of track.
* * *
Mile 88.25
Halle Salineinsel
major station, siding, water and coal supply, harbor, turning Y
From Halle we have to find a gently sloped way out of the Saale valley. The height difference to the countryside in the west is about 85 to 100 feet. With a sharp bend just before the village of Kröllwitz, we change direction from north to west and venture into a small valley. Here a considerable amount of groundwork will be necessary to allow for a track with a moderate grade.
Mile 90.5
Teutschenthal
Here are resources of Halite (rock salt, NaCl) and a bit of Sylvin (KCl). The place feeds its products into Halle. We might able to expedite that.
Leaving Teutschenthal, we pass alongside the Süsser See (Sweet lake) on our way to Eisleben.
Possible further sidings are Teutschenthal and Röblingen (mile 101).
Mile 108
Eisleben
siding, water supply
From here it's only about 40 Miles west to the manganite mines of Illfeld.
Mile 112
Helbra
Mile 114
Kloster Mansfeld
Mile 119
Hettstedt
siding, water and coal supply
From Helbra to Hettstedt, in about 7 miles we cross an area of intensive mining and processing of copper. Two fifths of this area belongs to Magdeburg, the rest is owned by the Wettins. The copper ore is being transported to the various smelters in the area. If there are branch lines to the major mines and smelters we should station one engine here to carry copper from the mines to Line 2b.
The towns and mines have been devastated by plundering armies and neglect but are trying to rebuild. One major limiting factor of growth before the war was the lack of wood to feed the furnaces. Some lignite might be welcome here.
Another problem here is the processing of copper into goods. It is being sent into the Harz mountains, where a lot of water driven rolling mills , such as the ones near Harzgerode and Mägdesprung, are in operation. These could be replaced with steam powered rolling mills and hammer works. In fact, in OTL the first steam engine in Germany was erected here in 1783-85. The Hettstedter Maschinenwerkstätte (Hettstedt maschine workshop) played a prominent role in copying the Watts steam engine.
From Hettstedt, we head south again. For about 15 miles there are no notable towns except Aschersleben about 7 miles away from the track. A possible further siding is at Mile 126 near Gross Quenstedt.
Mile 134
Stassfurt
siding, water and coal supply
Stassfurt is a place of great interest. This city seems to be one of the best places to start a chemical industry. The main reason are the valuable resources of Halite (NaCl), Sylvin (KCl), Gypsum (CaSO4), Bitter Salt (MgSO4), Glaubersalt (Na2SO4) and lignite only two miles away. Because of this abundance of resources, in OTL a serious industry started here and some discoveries regarding the soda were made in Stassfurt.
If the decision is made to establish an industry here again, we could gain early access to a river transportation link by building a bar-topped rail line to the Saale at Bernburg. The line would be about 7.5 miles, and would run over flat terrain. The cars should be drawn by horses. Bernburg has also big resources of limestone and therefore could become a center of lime and cement production. A branch line of two miles from Stassfurt going northwest to the lignite mines of Löderburg may be desirable too.
For the next 17 miles we go north. There is nothing important around here—except for the most fertile soil in Germany. Wheat, corn, oil seeds and sugar beets grow here very well. Imagine, Sodawerke Stassfurt could even offer some additional fertilizer in some years. But for now farming is still depressed here because of the devastation brought by Tilly and others.
A possible further siding is at Mile 126. It's about 2 Miles west from a village named Biere.
Mile 151
Salbke
siding
A little village that will get an big upturn, because land for housing can be obtained cheaply. Work is nearby in Buckau and access into Magdeburg will be easy because a tramline through Magdeburg will be established on our rail track.
The area between the villages Buckau and Salbke in the west and the river Elbe in the east should be used as place for establishing industry. The area is about two miles square. The banks of the Elbe are suitable for getting sand for construction works. Near Buckau, a small harbor or even yard might be possible.
Some miles of track will be needed for branches to connect newly founded companies. Two miles west of Salbke is a promising spot for the airfield of Magdeburg.
Mile 153
Buckau
station, water and coal supply, train depot, engine workshop, turning Y
Mile 155
Magdeburg Central
major station, harbor
The station is at Fischerufer at the banks of the Elbe. It's just below the Alter Markt (The Old Market) right in the heart of Magdeburg. All important places in downtown Magdeburg are just nearby.
Passenger ships to Hamburg and also up to Dresden can depart from a pontoon just in front of the station. Just prior to the station we will pass the Domfelsen in the Elbe. This underwater rock is a major obstacle to shipping. Even if the rock is blasted away we still have to cope with a strong current. In OTL they used chain tugging to get the ships over this point.
Mile 156
Magdeburg Harbor
harbor
Magdeburg Harbor is also the place where the new shipyard is being built. It's just a mile downriver (north) of Magdeburg Central, between a part of the town called Neustadt, and the Elbe. The banks of Elbe are much wider here than in downtown Magdeburg. While the old harbor is at Magdeburg Central, here there is much more room to grow and to use heavy equipment. The suitable area goes up to the next village.
Mile 158
Rothensee
stopping point
The village of Rothensee is the last stop of the track for now. It is a suitable area for loading livestock and other very bulky freight. Easy available resources of fine sand as well as the possibilities for building houses will make this place viable.
* * *
Further tracks from Magdeburg will most probably go west to Braunschweig, Hannover and, of course, Wietze. Later this will undoubtedly extend further west into the Ruhr area and eventually to Amsterdam. But from Magdeburg to Braunschweig there are no valuable goods or big towns for about 60 miles. We would have to build this track only for Wietze oil or for strategic reasons. In the short term, a track starting in Hettstedt and going along the northern rim of the Harz Mountains to service centers of mining and milling such as Mägdsprung, Thale, Ilsenburg and Goslar, eventually reaching Hannover, would be much more promising.
To go east to Berlin we would have to cross the Elbe and its muddy valley. As Havel is a navigable river all up to Berlin, and Brandenburg is not our best ally anyway, we should think twice about this track.
The Elbe courses north and later northwest from Magdeburg. It's a navigable river all the way down to the North Sea. Some towns like Lauenburg might pose a problem with customs and tariffs. But after having a closer look at one of the new monitors/ironclads, they will listen to reason. With a channel going from Dömitz to Lake Schwerin, we can go almost to Wismar. Ideally, the yard in Magdeburg
would be able to build some steam-powered dredges for digging the channel. Shipping on the Elbe could be sped up when we start tugging the barges.
So, building a railroad seems not so important here, at first. But certainly the telegraph line will spread out to west to Wietze and north to Wismar, Hamburg and Bremen. From Hamburg it will be extended to Ritzebüttel (aka Cuxhafen in OTL) on the mouth of the Elbe.
Track 3: The Thurinigian Highway from Gera to Eisenach
Track length 113.5 Miles
Needed rail about 240 Miles.
Trip time (one way): One day
Most of our allied cities like Jena, Weimar and Erfurt are actually towns just north of the Thüringer Wald. They are lined up east to west. So it seems wise to interconnect these towns by railroad, even if the roads between them are improved.
For service reasons, the Jena station should be updated to include a coal supply and a turning Y before starting Track 3.
* * *
Track 3a: East Branch
Mile 0E
Jena Göschwitz
station, water supply
North of the station the track branches east, crossing the Saale over a new combined rail and road bridge and then gently climbs a side valley. Passing Stadtroda, we reach Hermsdorf at the very end of this valley.
Mile 12.5E
Hermsdorf
siding
Hermsdorf is a village in a poor area, with only about a dozen houses. The siding here is only for traffic purposes. We go into a little creek valley for the next 10 miles to Gera. Just for the last half mile we turn south into the valley of the Weisse Elster. We stay on the western side to avoid having to construct a bridge.
Mile 23 E
Gera
siding, water supply and coal supply, turning table
The town of Gera is near the border of Saxony. It's a center of production for wool and linen and associated manufacturing. In the hills around here, sheep farming is very common. Gera has escaped destruction in the TYW rather well. The ruler, Heinrich Posthumus Reuss, did well in the last decades, too. His realm belongs nominally to Bohemia but in practice is rather independent.
A branch line to Eisenberg may be desirable. Near that town are resources of red clay which might be usable for pottery, bricks and roof tiles. It might be that usable resources of iron ore are underneath the sediments. Geologic survey will have to check this.
The Eisenberg branch line would go north from Gera along the valley of Weisse Elster, then turn west after 8 miles into the Rauschebach valley. This valley is dotted with several mills of various kinds. The line reaches Eisenberg after another 4.5 miles.
* * *
Track 3b: West Branch
Mile 0W
Jena Göschwitz
station, water supply, coal supply, turning table (see below)
About a mile south of Göschwitz and west of the town of Jena, the 3b line will branch from the Capital line, and head west into a side valley. After about 2.5 miles, it will turn southwest for a short while and pass Gross Schwabenhausen. Swinging back to west it enters the valley of the Ilm. Crossing the Ilm shortly thereafter, it goes along the far bank, eventually reaching Weimar.
Mile 13W
Weimar
siding
In Weimar we go west around the city to the siding north of the town.
Mile 27W
Erfurt
station, water supply
In Erfurt, we stay south of the town. The Erfurt region is the center of woad production which gives a nice blue dye. With Lothorien Farbenwerke producing aniline colors out of tar we might encounter a bit more resistance to the new times here.
Between Erfurt and the next stop, Gotha, is a small but fertile plain with some prominent hills. On three of them are Castles called "Die drei Gleichen."
Mile 45W
Gotha
siding, water and coal supply
The economy of Gotha is similar to that of Erfurt. Woad is the cash crop here too, albeit on a bit smaller scale. The station is south of the town, and is reached just after crossing a little creek.
Two miles west from Gotha we leave the valley and climb up a bit to the valley of the Hörsel. We will stay in this valley all the way to Eisenach and Hörsel. But we have to be careful because this little creek is known for flash floods. We stay on its right side (north shore) as there are fewer tributaries to cross there. Just before reaching Eisenach we cross the Hörschel. A possible further siding is at Mechterstedt (Mile 55 W).
Mile 65W
Eisenach
Station
A bit of woad, a bit of copper, a bit of timber. It's a small sleepy town. About 10 miles south east is the town of Ruhla, renowned for its knives.
We stay between the river and the walls of Eisenach and go west for 4 miles. The valley opens up to the Werra river here.
Mile 69.5 W
Hörschel
siding, water and coal supply, turning Y loading point/small harbor on the Werra
This station is built only to facilitate loading to ships on the Werra river. The neighboring village Wartha (1Mile) might be suited as well. The Hörschel (or Wartha) siding will give access to the river system of the Weser, which allows waterborne traffic downstream to Bremen and to Kassel. By using the Weser river we are able to go even to Minden, about 35 Miles West of Hannover.
Upriver, Werra goes around the Thüringer Wald and meets Schmalkalden and Meinigen. But it soon becomes too shallow for any shipping. An upgraded ferry or a combined bridge for carriages and railroad here in Hörschel would help all road traffic that goes further west to Kassel and southwest to Fulda and Frankfurt.
* * *
Track 3c: The Suhl Annex
Track length 14 Miles
This is a typical example of a branch line. The only special feature of this track is that it sits on the best way to Suhl, a town important for its gun making business.
Mile 0
Gotha
siding, water and coal supply
The track branches from the mainline just west of the siding. It turns south and passes some small villages. After four miles, it meets a small creek with a collection of mills. It follows the creek for about a mile, then turns west and climbs a bit for half a mile just to turn south again to get into Ohrdruf.
Mile 10
Ohrdruf
siding
Ohrdruf is a town with craftsmen, lumberjacks, a bit of sheepfarming and a small smelter.
From Ohrdruf the line goes along the Ohre creek. This creek is lined with over twenty water wheels in mills of various types over the next few miles, as the water supply is good and steady here. One of the mills is the famous Tobiashammer.
Mile 12.5
Luisenhain, el.450m
stopping point
Lumberjacks and hands for the mills live here. Their beer is well regarded.
Mile 14
Schwarzwald, el.480
station, water supply
Small village with five lumber mills. Just above is the Käferburg. Our track ends here because the conditions for railroad make it too difficult to continue. To get to Suhl on the other side of the Thüringer Wald with rail we should use a different valley and we still would need a tunnel about two miles long. So, it's not possible now.
But we have a road (the "Leubenstrasse") passing through to Suhl here. It's fairly old and well regarded. It can be refurbished to create a 1634 version of an "Autobahn." Two broad lanes, drainage along both side of the road, reliable bridges over all small creeks, the surface sealed with cobblestones and all maintained regularly. This road of 16 miles should go via Oberhof (elev. 800m), Zella St. Blasi (elev. 500m) to Suhl (elev. 450m). A pickup with a snow plow and spike wheels/snow chains should be able to keep this track open for much longer in winter. The telegraph line will go with the road and "island" stations will be established in Zella and Suhl for acquiring freight for the railroad.