What does the Brazilian association for railroad preservation do?
The Brazilian railroad sector is very rich in history. From the first railroad constructions, in the mid-1850s, to the present day, many changes have been made in this sector. With that, the Brazilian association of railroad preservation develops a very important work to preserve the country's railroad history, allowing the population to know more about this sector and its importance.
The preservation of a historical aspect, whether from the railroads, or any other sector, can be done in different ways. In art, for example, collections, museums, and galleries are developed, among other ideas that ensure that the history of valuable items is preserved and revealed to the public.
As the railroads played a fundamental role for Brazil in previous centuries, this preservation is essential. In addition to fostering the population's search for knowledge, it can help the sector to develop again efficiently, as it was during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
However, all aspects of historical preservation here in Brazil are still outdated. In recent years, for example, large areas of preservation, such as the National Museum, Cinematheque and UFMG Botanical Garden were affected by fires, largely as a result of the lack of care and investment in maintaining these environments.
In this sense, the work carried out by the Brazilian Association of railroad Preservation is fundamental for the memory of the Brazilian railroad system to be preserved and cared for. Next, we'll see what exactly this association is, how it works, what its capabilities are, the regions in which it operates and the historic railroads it operates.
Content Index
What is the Brazilian Association of railroad Preservation?
Well, as the name implies, the Brazilian association for railroad preservation is a company that has the responsibility to work to "promote the rescue and conservation of the Brazilian railroad historical heritage, making the goods available for public visitation", as indicated by the Association.
As well as several other associations and NGOs of Brazilian historical preservation, the Brazilian Association of railroad Preservation (ABPF) is non-profit and is managed by a national, regional board and with several centers spread throughout Brazil.
The resources obtained from visits and trips made by trains managed by ABPF are used to maintain the project.
The foundation of the Brazilian association for railroad preservation was in 1977 by Frenchman Patrick Henri Ferdinand Dollinger, who joined those interested in preserving the memory of steam locomotives and who wanted to help in the historical dissemination of the Brazilian railroad system.
The national headquarters of the Brazilian Association for railroad Preservation is currently in the city of Campinas, in the metropolitan region of the State of São Paulo. However, when the ABPF was formed, its headquarters were in São Paulo.
Despite its headquarters being located in Campinas, the association has always sought to work to preserve the railroad memory of the entire country. It is precisely for this reason that the ABPF is divided into regional nuclei, aiming at this broader scope.
The main idea behind the Brazilian Association for railroad Preservation is precisely to work so that the country's historic railroads are not forgotten. With this, the association works with museums, train trips that are no longer used in government plans and other ways of taking this historical knowledge to the population.
ABPF Regionals
As we said, the Brazilian Association for railroad Preservation has spread and established itself in different regions of the country, not concentrating its ideas and knowledge only in the Southeast region and, essentially, in the state of São Paulo.
In this way, the ABPF operates in different regions, having offices in different states and municipalities in Brazil. The main regions of ABPF and the cities in which it operates are:
- Campinas Regional – Campinas and Jaguariúna;
- Paraná Regional - Curitiba;
- Porto Novo Regional - Porto Novo;
- Rio de Janeiro Regional – City of Rio de Janeiro;
- Santa Catarina Regional – Apiúna, Marcelino Ramos, Piratuba and Rio Negrinho;
- São Paulo Regional – São Paulo and Paranapiacaba;
- Sul de Minas Regional – Cruzeiro – SP, Guararema – SP, Passa Quatro – MG, São Lourenço – MG and Soledade de Minas – MG;;
- West of Minas Studies Center;
- Rio Claro Center.
Each one of these regional or nuclei of the Brazilian Association of railroad Preservation are responsible for operating in these cities in different ways, whether by running workshops, working with rolling stock, museums and, essentially, traveling with preserved historic trains.
Historic railroads with trains in operation
As we said, one of the great achievements of the Brazilian Association of railroad Preservation is providing the population with trips on historic railroad trains in the country. Currently, there are some important trains that have this tourist operation and that are managed by the association, ensuring that the population gets to know more and more about the history of Brazilian railroads and get a feeling for what these trips are like.
These tourist trains are called “dynamic museums”, precisely because they are museums, which show a little of the history of the region and the vehicle itself, but in a dynamic way, with the execution of a trip through different regions.
During train rides, people are subjected to different attractions, according to the type of train we are talking about.
While certain trips are loaded with music and on-board services, others are more focused on the history of the railroad, told by monitors from the Associação Brasileira de Preservação Histórico and by the images made available on the trains.
Find out which and where the main dynamic museums managed by the ABPF are and are located:
- Campinas Jaguariúna Railroad – Campinas to Jaguariúna;
- Trem da Serra, Trem das Termas and Railroad Santa Catarina – Santa Catarina;
- Trem dos Imigrantes and Trem dos Ingleses – São Paulo;
- Trem das Águas and Trem da Serra da Mantiqueira – Sul de Minas;
In addition to operations with dynamic museums, it is possible to find in these and other regions of the Brazilian Association of railroad Preservation, other museums that help preserve the history of Brazilian railroads, taking this fundamental knowledge to the population, such as the railroad Signaling Museum in Rio de Janeiro.
Conclusion: Brazilian association for railroad preservation
As we have seen, the ABPF is an important association for the historical preservation of Brazilian railroads. With regional offices in different regions of the country, the ABPF works effectively to bring knowledge about the history of Brazilian railroads to the population through workshops, lectures, museums and, fundamentally, trips on historic trains.
Searchs:
http://vfco.brazilia.jor.br/abpf-preservacao-ferroviaria.shtml
