Within Sierra Leone Curiosities
How Sierra Leone's Lost Trains Survived
Sierra Leone's forgotten locomotives and carriages survived closure, neglect and civil war before becoming a public museum.
On this page
- Closure and disappearance from public memory
- Survival inside the Cline Town workshops
- Rediscovery, restoration and museum opening
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Introduction
Sierra Leone’s National Railway Museum is unusual not because it displays the country’s railway history, but because the collection itself almost became part of that history. After the national railway closed in the mid-1970s, a small group of locomotives, coaches and railway artefacts was set aside for a planned museum. Instead of being scrapped, these vehicles remained locked inside the former railway workshops at Cline Town, where they endured decades of neglect, vandalism, civil war and occupation by displaced families. For many years, both inside and outside Sierra Leone, it was widely assumed that the collection had been destroyed. Its rediscovery and eventual restoration turned what had been a forgotten industrial relic into one of the country’s most remarkable heritage survival stories.[sierraleoneheritage.org]sierraleoneheritage.orgOpen source on sierraleoneheritage.org.
Unlike many preserved railways that have enjoyed continuous institutional care, Sierra Leone’s collection survived largely through circumstance and the determination of later conservation efforts. That improbable journey is what makes the museum one of the country’s most distinctive historical collections.
Closure and disappearance from public memory
The Sierra Leone Government Railway operated a narrow-gauge network linking Freetown with Bo, Makeni and eventually Pendembu. By the 1960s, however, investment shifted towards roads, the railway had become increasingly unprofitable, and the government decided to close the system. Passenger services ended in 1974 and the remaining railway infrastructure was dismantled during 1975.[Sierra Leone Heritage]sierraleoneheritage.orgOpen source on sierraleoneheritage.org.
Before the railway was sold for scrap, officials retained a representative collection of locomotives, rolling stock and historic vehicles. The intention was to preserve part of the system for future generations rather than allow every surviving train to be dismantled. That decision proved crucial. Without it, Sierra Leone would have lost virtually all physical evidence of the country’s railway age.[Google Arts & Culture]artsandculture.google.comArts & Culture Sierra Leone National Railway Museum — Google Arts & CultureGoogle Arts & CultureSierra Leone National Railway Museum — Google Arts & Culture…
Once the railway disappeared from everyday life, however, the preserved collection also faded from public awareness. Stored inside the former workshops at Cline Town, the vehicles were largely inaccessible and received little maintenance. As the years passed, knowledge of their existence spread only among railway enthusiasts and a handful of former railway employees.[Sierra Leone Heritage]sierraleoneheritage.orgOpen source on sierraleoneheritage.org.
Survival inside the Cline Town workshops
The greatest threat came not from age but from Sierra Leone’s turbulent recent history.[Wikipedia]WikipediaSierra Leone Government RailwaySierra Leone Government Railway
During the civil war between 1991 and 2002, the workshops were damaged, looted and neglected. Metal fittings disappeared, components were stripped from vehicles and buildings deteriorated. Yet the core collection remained surprisingly intact. During parts of the conflict the workshops also sheltered large numbers of internally displaced people seeking safety, meaning the locomotives and coaches became part of an improvised refuge rather than an abandoned industrial site.[wikipedia.org]WikipediaSierra Leone Government RailwaySierra Leone Government Railway
This survival was never guaranteed. Railway historians outside Sierra Leone often assumed the preserved engines had been destroyed during the conflict because virtually no information emerged from the country for many years. Only after peace returned did it become clear that the locomotives, although weathered and vandalised, had escaped complete destruction.[Wikipedia]WikipediaSierra Leone Government RailwaySierra Leone Government Railway
The survival of the collection is therefore remarkable for two reasons. It outlasted the economic decision that eliminated the railway itself, and it also survived a decade-long conflict that devastated much of the country’s infrastructure.
Rediscovery, restoration and museum opening
A turning point came in 2004 when British Army officer Colonel Steve Davies located the forgotten collection and began working with Sierra Leonean partners to document and preserve it. What had long been regarded as a lost railway heritage site suddenly became a realistic restoration project. Government support followed, including backing from President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah for preserving the country’s railway heritage.[Wikipedia]WikipediaSierra Leone Government RailwaySierra Leone Government Railway
The National Railway Museum officially opened in 2005 within the restored Cline Town workshops. Rather than rebuilding the railway itself, the project focused on conserving what remained, stabilising locomotives and coaches, creating interpretation for visitors and preserving archives, photographs and railway artefacts. Local conservation staff have continued restoration work with technical guidance from railway specialists, including collaboration with the UK’s National Railway Museum.[Sierra Leone Heritage]sierraleoneheritage.orgOpen source on sierraleoneheritage.org.
Among the collection’s most notable exhibits are:
- Beyer-Garratt steam locomotive No. 73, built in 1955.
- Hunslet steam locomotive No. 81.
- Manning Wardle locomotive Nellie from 1915.
- Early diesel locomotives dating from the late 1950s.
- Queen Elizabeth II’s specially prepared Royal Coach from her 1961 visit.
- Passenger coaches, freight wagons, railway equipment, photographs and archival material documenting the former national railway.[Sierra Leone Heritage]sierraleoneheritage.orgOpen source on sierraleoneheritage.org.
None of the locomotives currently operates. Missing components, wartime damage, conservation priorities and limited funding mean the emphasis is on preservation rather than returning the engines to steam.[slrailwaymuseum]sierraleonerailwaymuseum.orgslrailwaymuseum The Collection | slrailwaymuseumslrailwaymuseum The Collection | slrailwaymuseum
Why the collection matters
Many railway museums celebrate engineering achievement. Sierra Leone’s collection tells a different story: how heritage can survive despite political upheaval, economic decline and armed conflict.
The museum preserves evidence of a transport network that once connected much of the country before roads replaced rail. At the same time, the vehicles themselves have acquired a second history. Their decades hidden inside abandoned workshops have become almost as significant as their years in railway service. Visitors encounter not simply colonial-era locomotives but artefacts marked by closure, abandonment, rediscovery and recovery.[Google Arts & Culture]artsandculture.google.comArts & Culture Sierra Leone National Railway Museum — Google Arts & CultureGoogle Arts & CultureSierra Leone National Railway Museum — Google Arts & Culture…
Within Sierra Leone’s wider landscape of unusual collections, this makes the National Railway Museum distinctive. Its greatest curiosity is not an individual locomotive or royal carriage, but the improbable survival of an entire railway collection that many believed had vanished forever. Recent anniversaries marking both the railway’s closure and the museum’s founding have reinforced its role as a nationally recognised heritage site and a symbol of resilience rather than nostalgia alone.[tourism.gov.sl]tourism.gov.slOpen source on tourism.gov.sl.
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Endnotes
1.
Source: artsandculture.google.com
Title: Arts & Culture Sierra Leone National Railway Museum — Google Arts & Culture
Link:https://artsandculture.google.com/story/XgXhOtlpqsUK4Q
Source snippet
Google Arts & CultureSierra Leone National Railway Museum — Google Arts & Culture...
2.
Source: Wikipedia
Title: Sierra Leone Government Railway
Link:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Leone_Government_Railway
3.
Source: tourism.gov.sl
Link:https://tourism.gov.sl/celebrating-a-milestone-20-years-of-the-national-railway-museum/
4.
Source: register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk
Link:https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/about-the-register-of-charities/-/charity-details/5122614?_uk_gov_ccew_onereg_charitydetails_web_portlet_CharityDetailsPortlet_organisationNumber=5122614
5.
Source: register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk
Link:https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/about-the-register-of-charities/-/charity-details/5122614/full-print
6.
Source: sierraleoneheritage.org
Link:https://sierraleoneheritage.org/museum/railway-museum
7.
Source: sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org
Title: slrailwaymuseum Sierra Leone National Railway Museum
Link:https://www.sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org/
8.
Source: sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org
Title: slrailwaymuseum News
Link:https://www.sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org/news-railway-museum-goes-global
Source snippet
slrailwaymuseumNews - Railway Museum goes global | slrailwaymuseum...
9.
Source: sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org
Title: slrailwaymuseum The Collection | slrailwaymuseum
Link:https://www.sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org/the-collection
10.
Source: sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org
Link:https://www.sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org/visit-us
11.
Source: sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org
Link:https://www.sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org/our-plans
12.
Source: sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org
Link:https://www.sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org/help-us-now
13.
Source: sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org
Link:https://www.sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org/the-team
14.
Source: sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org
Link:https://www.sierraleonerailwaymuseum.org/sierra-leones-railways
15.
Source: sierraleoneheritage.org
Link:https://www.sierraleoneheritage.org/museum
16.
Source: sierraleoneheritage.org
Link:https://www.sierraleoneheritage.org/museum/history
Additional References
17.
Source: sierraloaded.sl
Link:https://sierraloaded.sl/news/national-railway-meseum-celebrations/
Source snippet
March 15, 2025 — TOURISM MINISTRY AND PARTNERS MARK 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF SIERRA LEONE NATIONAL RAILWAY MUSEUM 15 March, 2025 | 1,933 | 1 C...
Published: March 15, 2025
18.
Source: nrmfriends.org.uk
Title: Friends of the Sierra Leone National Railway Museum
Link:https://www.nrmfriends.org.uk/post/friends-of-the-sierra-leone-national-railway-museum
Source snippet
July 3, 2021 — TELEPHONE: 01904 636874 Email: nrm.friends@sciencemuseum.ac.uk Image: Fnrm logo1.png FRIENDS OF THE SIERRA LEONE NATIONAL...
Published: July 3, 2021
19.
Source: tourismsierraleone.com
Title: During the 70s, its 350 miles
Link:https://tourismsierraleone.com/attractions/the-railway-national-museum/
Source snippet
The Railway National Museum | Sierra Leone TourismMay 26, 2024 — THE RAILWAY NATIONAL MUSEUM WHERE TO GO THE RAILWAY NATIONAL MUSEUM Imag...
Published: May 26, 2024
20.
Source: youtube.com
Title: The Sierra Leone National Railway Museum
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLZ5yuoVFm0
Source snippet
Sierra Leone National Railway Museum Cline Town Sierra Leone National Railway Museum @ Cline Town Freetown |De Point Discovery Showcased...
21.
Source: youtube.com
Title: A Trip to the National Railway Museum in Freetown, Sierra Leone
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVkvYrqaq_k
Source snippet
SIERRA LEONE RAILWAY MUSEUM In Freetown // Why It Seized Operating...
22.
Source: youtube.com
Title: Sierra Leone National Railway Museum @ Cline Town Freetown
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bV_Scq1ZvTQ
Source snippet
A Trip to the National Railway Museum in Freetown, Sierra Leone...
23.
Source: youtube.com
Title: SIERRA LEONE RAILWAY MUSEUM In Freetown // Why It Seized Operating
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWt510oPGb8
Source snippet
National Railway Museum, Freetown, Sierra Leone...
24.
Source: collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk
Link:https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/people/ap26964/sierra-leone-government-railway
25.
Source: youtube.com
Title: National Railway Museum, Freetown, Sierra Leone
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u38cxx3E7P4
Source snippet
The Sierra Leone National Railway Museum...
26.
Source: nrmfriends.org.uk
Link:https://www.nrmfriends.org.uk/