Buenos Aires Great Southern Railway
Encyclopedia
The Buenos Aires Great Southern Railway (BAGS) (in Spanish: Gran Ferrocarril Sud) was one of the Big Four broad gauge
, , British-owned companies that built and operated railway networks in Argentina
. The company was founded by Edward Lumb in 1862 and the first general manager was Edward Banfield (railroad engineer) after whom the Buenos Aires suburban station of Banfield was named, when it opened in 1873. After president Juan Perón
nationalisation
Argentina’s railway network in 1948 it became part of the state-owned company Ferrocarril General Roca
.
, construction began on the site of the present day railway terminus at Plaza Constitución
in Buenos Aires, and the line of 114 km as far as Chascomús
was completed in 1865. The first terminus was completed in 1885 and on 19 September 1925 a foundation stone for the rebuilding of the terminus was laid by the Prince of Wales
, later Duke of Windsor
, during his official visit to Argentina.
) single track, 504 stations, 857 steam locomotives, 955 carriages, 16,602 wagons and over 30,000 staff. Its influence over the life and development of Buenos Aires Province
was considerable. The railway network was planned to provide communication between towns in the interior of the province and the capital, and to enable the agricultural produce of the interior, much of which was destined for export, to reach the ports of Buenos Aires, Necochea
and Bahía Blanca
.
in the Rio Negro valley, a power station in Bahía Blanca
, the Argentine Fruit Distributors Company, the Club Hotel de la Ventana
, the Condor long distance coach company, and a hotel with an adjoining golf course in Miramar.
whose wells supplied a large proportion of the fuel oil used by these railways. The railway controlled and operated the South Dock in Buenos Aires, at the mouth of the Riachuelo River.
, Miramar and Necochea
. Apart from the suburban services around Buenos Aires and Bahía Blanca, the main traffic flow was between these two cities and beyond by three routes: the direct line via Las Flores
, Olavarría
and Coronel Pringles
; a variant of this from Olavarría
through General La Madrid
and Saavedra; or finally via Las Flores and Tres Arroyos
. Services beyond Bahia Blanca through the Plaza Huincul
oilfield to Zapala
in Neuquén Province
, and to Bariloche in Rio Negro Province
, at first provided by through coaches on trains to Bahia Blanca, soon developed to the point where it became necessary to run separate complete trains from Buenos Aires.
the BAGS took over that company in 1898.
In 1906 the BAGS proposed an extension of the line from Zapala
, 115 km from the Chilean border, across the Andes
to the town of Lonquimay
in Chile
. Due to lack of funds the line was never built . This would have provided a rail link between the two counties in addition to the Transandine Railway, connecting Mendoza
in Argentina with Los Andes
in Chile, which was opened in 1910.
Other mainline services included those from Buenos Aires via Bolivar
to Carhué
, via Maipú
to Tandil
, via Chas
and Ayacucho
to Necochea
, and services from Bahía Blanca to Toay
in La Pampa Province
and to Huinca Renanco
in Córdoba Province
.
in Europe, most of the steam locomotive
s, almost all of which were manufactured in Britain, burned oil
, a fuel in which Argentina was almost self-sufficient. Coal suitable for locomotive working was not available locally and had to be imported. The heaviest goods trains, reaching over 2000 tons during the harvest season, were often hauled by three-part articulated Garratt
locomotives.
s.
, 11 km from the Plaza Constitución, were the largest in South America, and employed nearly 3,000 men. Although primarily for repair work, the shops were equipped to make every part of a locomotive or a railway carriage. When the company took over the working of the Bahía Blanca and North Western Railway
from the Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway
company in 1925 it acquired the latter's workshops in Bahia Blanca.
and the Buenos Aires Midland
were combined.
's presidency, the BAGS became part of the state-owned company Ferrocarril General Roca
. At the same time it absorbed the former state-owned line from Patagones to Bariloche, the narrow gauge
line from Ingeniero Jacobacci
to Esquel
, affectionately known as La Trochita
, and the southern half of the French-owned Ferrocarril Rosario y Puerto Belgrano
.
Indian gauge
Indian gauge is a track gauge commonly used in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Argentina and Chile. It is also the gauge that is used on BART , in northern California.- Scotland :...
, , British-owned companies that built and operated railway networks in Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. The company was founded by Edward Lumb in 1862 and the first general manager was Edward Banfield (railroad engineer) after whom the Buenos Aires suburban station of Banfield was named, when it opened in 1873. After president Juan Perón
Juan Perón
Juan Domingo Perón was an Argentine military officer, and politician. Perón was three times elected as President of Argentina though he only managed to serve one full term, after serving in several government positions, including the Secretary of Labor and the Vice Presidency...
nationalisation
Railway Nationalisation in Argentina
In 1948, during President Juan Perón’s first term of office, the seven British-owned and three French-owned railway companies then operating in Argentina, were purchased by the state...
Argentina’s railway network in 1948 it became part of the state-owned company Ferrocarril General Roca
Ferrocarril General Roca
Ferrocarril General Roca , named after the former Argentine president Julio Argentino Roca, was one of the six state-owned Argentine railway companies formed after President Juan Perón's nationalisation of the railway network in 1948...
.
History
On 7 March 1864, in a ceremony attended by the president Bartolomé MitreBartolomé Mitre
Bartolomé Mitre Martínez was an Argentine statesman, military figure, and author. He was the President of Argentina from 1862 to 1868.-Life and times:...
, construction began on the site of the present day railway terminus at Plaza Constitución
Estación Constitución
Constitución railway station is a large railway terminus in Barrio Constitución in central Buenos Aires, Argentina...
in Buenos Aires, and the line of 114 km as far as Chascomús
Chascomús
Chascomús, is the principal city in Chascomús Partido in eastern Buenos Aires Province in eastern Argentina, located south of the capital Buenos Aires. As of 2001, the city had a population of 30,670 people.-History:...
was completed in 1865. The first terminus was completed in 1885 and on 19 September 1925 a foundation stone for the rebuilding of the terminus was laid by the Prince of Wales
Edward VIII of the United Kingdom
Edward VIII was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and Emperor of India, from 20 January to 11 December 1936.Before his accession to the throne, Edward was Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay...
, later Duke of Windsor
Duke of Windsor
The title Duke of Windsor was created in the Peerage of the United Kingdom in 1937 for Prince Edward, the former King Edward VIII, following his abdication in December 1936. The dukedom takes its name from the town where Windsor Castle, a residence of English monarchs since the Norman Conquest, is...
, during his official visit to Argentina.
Growth
By 1930 the company had become a vast enterprise, probably the largest of its kind in the southern hemisphere, with over 8000 km of mostly (broad gaugeBroad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
) single track, 504 stations, 857 steam locomotives, 955 carriages, 16,602 wagons and over 30,000 staff. Its influence over the life and development of Buenos Aires Province
Buenos Aires Province
The Province of Buenos Aires is the largest and most populous province of Argentina. It takes the name from the city of Buenos Aires, which used to be the provincial capital until it was federalized in 1880...
was considerable. The railway network was planned to provide communication between towns in the interior of the province and the capital, and to enable the agricultural produce of the interior, much of which was destined for export, to reach the ports of Buenos Aires, Necochea
Necochea
Necochea is a port city in the southwest of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, located on the Atlantic coast, on the edge of the Quequén Grande river, from Buenos Aires City and southwest from Mar del Plata...
and Bahía Blanca
Bahía Blanca
Bahía Blanca is a city located in the south-west of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, by the Atlantic Ocean, and seat of government of Bahía Blanca Partido. It has a population of 274,509 inhabitants according to the...
.
Ancillary services
The company and its subsidiaries owned and operated many ancillary services including grain handling facilities, an experimental fruit farm at Cinco SaltosCinco Saltos
Cinco Saltos is a city in the province of Río Negro, Argentina, located on the eastern side of the valley of the Neuquén River, near the Pellegrini Lake, about from northwest of Neuquén and from Allen...
in the Rio Negro valley, a power station in Bahía Blanca
Bahía Blanca
Bahía Blanca is a city located in the south-west of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, by the Atlantic Ocean, and seat of government of Bahía Blanca Partido. It has a population of 274,509 inhabitants according to the...
, the Argentine Fruit Distributors Company, the Club Hotel de la Ventana
Club Hotel de la Ventana
Club Hotel de la Ventana was a large, luxurious hotel resort, built by the Buenos Aires Great Southern Railway and opened in 1911 near Villa Ventana, 17 km from the town of Sierra de La Ventana, in the southeast of the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina....
, the Condor long distance coach company, and a hotel with an adjoining golf course in Miramar.
Ports
Puerto Ingeniero White, one of ports of Bahia Blanca, was built by the company who installed two grain elevators there in 1908 to cope with the increasing grain traffic, and constructed a jetty to provide berthing for four steamships. Together with the other British-owned railways, the company had a financial interest in the Compania Ferrocarriles de Petroleo in Comodoro RivadaviaComodoro Rivadavia
Comodoro Rivadavia is a city in the Patagonian province of Chubut in southern Argentina, located on the San Jorge Gulf, an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, at the foot of the Chenque Hill. Comodoro Rivadavia is the most important city of the San Jorge Basin....
whose wells supplied a large proportion of the fuel oil used by these railways. The railway controlled and operated the South Dock in Buenos Aires, at the mouth of the Riachuelo River.
Traffic
Much of the goods traffic, including the movement of grain, livestock, fruit from the valley of the Rio Negro, was seasonal, as was the summer tourist traffic to Mar del PlataMar del Plata
Mar del Plata is an Argentine city located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, south of Buenos Aires. Mar del Plata is the second largest city of Buenos Aires Province. The name "Mar del Plata" had apparently the sense of "sea of the Río de la Plata region" or "adjoining sea to the Río de la Plata"...
, Miramar and Necochea
Necochea
Necochea is a port city in the southwest of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, located on the Atlantic coast, on the edge of the Quequén Grande river, from Buenos Aires City and southwest from Mar del Plata...
. Apart from the suburban services around Buenos Aires and Bahía Blanca, the main traffic flow was between these two cities and beyond by three routes: the direct line via Las Flores
Las Flores, Buenos Aires
Las Flores is a town in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and the only city in the partido of the same name. It has a population of about 23,000 inhabitants as per the . It is located 187 km from Buenos Aires City. Its main economic activities are related to agriculture and cattle breeding....
, Olavarría
Olavarría
Olavarría is a city in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, located. It is the capital of the Olavarría Partido and has over 111,320 inhabitants, per the ....
and Coronel Pringles
Coronel Pringles
Coronel Pringles is a town in the south of the Buenos Aires Province in Argentina. It is the head town of the Coronel Pringles Partido.The partido of Coronel Pringles was created in 1882 by the government of the Province of Buenos Aires who divided the territory of Tres Arroyos into the partidos of...
; a variant of this from Olavarría
Olavarría
Olavarría is a city in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, located. It is the capital of the Olavarría Partido and has over 111,320 inhabitants, per the ....
through General La Madrid
General La Madrid
General Lamadrid is a town in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is the head town of the General Lamadrid Partido.The settlement was founded on February 14, 1890 by provincial law...
and Saavedra; or finally via Las Flores and Tres Arroyos
Tres Arroyos
Tres Arroyos is a city in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is the capital of the Tres Arroyos Partido.The city has a sizable population of Dutch and Danish descent.- Archaeological site :...
. Services beyond Bahia Blanca through the Plaza Huincul
Plaza Huincul
Plaza Huincul is a village and municipality in Neuquén Province in southwestern Argentina.-References:...
oilfield to Zapala
Zapala
Zapala is a city in the Patagonian province of Neuquén, Argentina with about 32,000 inhabitants according to the .The city is located at the geographic center of the province at the confluence of national and provincial roads, on a route to the Andes and Chile...
in Neuquén Province
Neuquén Province
Neuquén is a province of Argentina, located in the west of the country, at the northern end of Patagonia. It borders Mendoza Province to the north, Rio Negro Province to the southeast, and Chile to the west...
, and to Bariloche in Rio Negro Province
Río Negro Province
Río Negro is a province of Argentina, located at the northern edge of Patagonia. Neighboring provinces are from the south clockwise Chubut, Neuquén, Mendoza, La Pampa and Buenos Aires. To the east lies the Atlantic Ocean.Its capital is Viedma...
, at first provided by through coaches on trains to Bahia Blanca, soon developed to the point where it became necessary to run separate complete trains from Buenos Aires.
Extensions
Always in fierce competition with the British-owned Buenos Aires and Ensenada Port RailwayBuenos Aires and Ensenada Port Railway
The Buenos Aires & Ensenada Port Railway was a British-owned company that built and operated a broad gauge railway network in Argentina towards the end of the nineteenth century...
the BAGS took over that company in 1898.
In 1906 the BAGS proposed an extension of the line from Zapala
Zapala
Zapala is a city in the Patagonian province of Neuquén, Argentina with about 32,000 inhabitants according to the .The city is located at the geographic center of the province at the confluence of national and provincial roads, on a route to the Andes and Chile...
, 115 km from the Chilean border, across the Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
to the town of Lonquimay
Lonquimay
Lonquimay is a town and commune in the Malleco Province of southern Chile's Araucanía Region.- Transport :It is the terminus of an abandoned broad gauge railway project which supporters cited as the most practical railway route through the Andes to Argentina, but which lacks a link between...
in Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
. Due to lack of funds the line was never built . This would have provided a rail link between the two counties in addition to the Transandine Railway, connecting Mendoza
Mendoza, Argentina
Mendoza is the capital city of Mendoza Province, in Argentina. It is located in the northern-central part of the province, in a region of foothills and high plains, on the eastern side of the Andes. As of the , Mendoza's population was 110,993...
in Argentina with Los Andes
Los Andes, Chile
Los Andes, founded in July 31, 1791 as Santa Rosa de Los Andes, is a Chilean city and commune located in the province of the same name, in Valparaíso Region...
in Chile, which was opened in 1910.
Other mainline services included those from Buenos Aires via Bolivar
Bolívar Partido
Bolívar Partido is a partido located in mid central Buenos Aires Province, Argentina.The partido has 5,027 km² and a population of 32,442 , and its capital is San Carlos de Bolívar.-Settlements:*San Carlos de Bolívar...
to Carhué
Carhué
Carhué is an Argentine town in the Province of Buenos Aires, head of the Municipality of Adolfo Alsina. Carhué is about 561 km to the west of the city of La Plata and about 520 km from Buenos Aires...
, via Maipú
Maipú Partido
Maipú Partido is a partido located in the central eastern part of Buenos Aires Province in Argentina.The provincial subdivision has a population of about 10,000 inhabitants in an area of , and its capital city is Maipú.-Economy:...
to Tandil
Tandil
-Place name:The name of the city comes from the Mapuche words tan , and lil . It is probably a reference to the Piedra Movediza , a large boulder which stood seemingly miraculously balanced on the edge of a rocky foothill. The Moving Stone toppled on February 29, 1912, and split into two pieces at...
, via Chas
Parque Chas
Parque Chas is a barrio in Buenos Aires, Argentina, reinstated on 6 December 2005 through By-law No. 1907/06.Parque Chas is the smallest district in Buenos Aires and is bounded by La Pampa, Triunvirato, Combatientes de Malvinas, Chorroarín, and Constituyentes streets. It is also the only district...
and Ayacucho
Ayacucho Partido
Ayacucho Partido is a partido in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina.The provincial subdivision has a population of 19,669 inhabitants in an area of 6,785 km² , and its capital city is Ayacucho, which is located around 330 km from Buenos Aires.-Districts:* Cangallo* Udaquiola*...
to Necochea
Necochea
Necochea is a port city in the southwest of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, located on the Atlantic coast, on the edge of the Quequén Grande river, from Buenos Aires City and southwest from Mar del Plata...
, and services from Bahía Blanca to Toay
Toay
Toay is a town in La Pampa Province in Argentina.-References:...
in La Pampa Province
La Pampa Province
La Pampa is a sparsely populated province of Argentina, located in the Pampas in the center of the country. Neighboring provinces are from the north clockwise San Luis, Córdoba, Buenos Aires, Río Negro, Neuquén and Mendoza.-History:...
and to Huinca Renanco
Huinca Renancó
Huinca Renancó is a city in the province of Córdoba, Argentina...
in Córdoba Province
Córdoba Province (Argentina)
Córdoba is a province of Argentina, located in the center of the country. Neighboring provinces are : Santiago del Estero, Santa Fe, Buenos Aires, La Pampa, San Luis, La Rioja and Catamarca...
.
Locomotives
Except during the 1939-45 warWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in Europe, most of the steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s, almost all of which were manufactured in Britain, burned oil
Oil burner (engine)
An oil burner engine is a steam engine that uses oil as its fuel. The term is often used with reference to a locomotive or ship engine that burns oil, to heat water, to produce steam which drives the pistons, or turbines, from which the power is derived. Some engines of this form were originally...
, a fuel in which Argentina was almost self-sufficient. Coal suitable for locomotive working was not available locally and had to be imported. The heaviest goods trains, reaching over 2000 tons during the harvest season, were often hauled by three-part articulated Garratt
Garratt
A Garratt is a type of steam locomotive that is articulated in three parts. Its boiler is mounted on the centre frame, and two steam engines are mounted on separate frames, one on each end of the boiler. Articulation permits larger locomotives to negotiate curves and lighter rails that might...
locomotives.
Hazards
Hazards on the tracks included the accumulation of sand during and after high winds, stray cattle and the possibility of collisions at the many unprotected level crossingLevel crossing
A level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
s.
Workshops
The railway's repair shops were built in 1901 at Remedios de EscaladaRemedios de escalada
Remedios de Escalada de San Martín is a city located in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, within Lanús Partido, Gran Buenos Aires. It covers an area of 9,95 km² and the population was 83,636 in 1991; the demonym for its inhabitants is "escaladense."...
, 11 km from the Plaza Constitución, were the largest in South America, and employed nearly 3,000 men. Although primarily for repair work, the shops were equipped to make every part of a locomotive or a railway carriage. When the company took over the working of the Bahía Blanca and North Western Railway
Bahía Blanca and North Western Railway
The Bahía Blanca and North Western Railway was a British-owned railway company that operated in Argentina, where it was known as the Ferrocarril Bahia Blanca al Noroeste....
from the Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway
Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway
The Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway was one of the Big Four broad gauge, , British-owned companies that built and operated railway networks in Argentina....
company in 1925 it acquired the latter's workshops in Bahia Blanca.
Road competition
The year 1930 marked the peak of the company’s prosperity but towards the end of that year the ill effects of the progressive devaluation of the Argentine peso began to be felt and labour costs began to increase substantially. The company was also facing increasing competition from transport on the expanding road network.Merger
In 1933 the administration of three British-owned companies BAGS, Buenos Aires WesternBuenos Aires Western Railway
The Buenos Aires Western Railway was one of the Big Four broad gauge British-owned companies that built and operated railway networks in Argentina...
and the Buenos Aires Midland
Buenos Aires Midland Railway
The Buenos Aires Midland Railway was a British-owned railway company which operated in Argentina where it was known as Ferrocarril Midland de Buenos Aires. The company built and operated the line between Estación Puente Alsina and Carhué in Buenos Aires Province...
were combined.
Nationalisation
When the entire Argentine railway network was nationalised in 1948, during Juan PeronJuan Perón
Juan Domingo Perón was an Argentine military officer, and politician. Perón was three times elected as President of Argentina though he only managed to serve one full term, after serving in several government positions, including the Secretary of Labor and the Vice Presidency...
's presidency, the BAGS became part of the state-owned company Ferrocarril General Roca
Ferrocarril General Roca
Ferrocarril General Roca , named after the former Argentine president Julio Argentino Roca, was one of the six state-owned Argentine railway companies formed after President Juan Perón's nationalisation of the railway network in 1948...
. At the same time it absorbed the former state-owned line from Patagones to Bariloche, the narrow gauge
Narrow gauge
A narrow gauge railway is a railway that has a track gauge narrower than the of standard gauge railways. Most existing narrow gauge railways have gauges of between and .- Overview :...
line from Ingeniero Jacobacci
Ingeniero Jacobacci
Ingeniero Jacobacci is a city in Río Negro Province, Argentina. It has a population of 5,719 inhabitants and was named in honor of Guido Jacobacci, the director of the railway opened in 1916 between San Antonio Oeste, on the Atlantic Ocean coast, and San Carlos de Bariloche, in the Andes...
to Esquel
Esquel
According to the , the Esquel district had about 28,000 inhabitants, with one of the highest rates of growth in the province, mainly as result of the immigration of people from Buenos Aires, but also from other provinces. It has wide cement streets with sidewalks, and is clean and well maintained...
, affectionately known as La Trochita
La Trochita
La Trochita, , in English known as the Old Patagonian Express, is a narrow gauge railway in Patagonia, Argentina using steam locomotives. The nickname La Trochita means literally "The Little Narrow Gauge" in Spanish...
, and the southern half of the French-owned Ferrocarril Rosario y Puerto Belgrano
Ferrocarril Rosario y Puerto Belgrano
The Ferrocarril Rosario y Puerto Belgrano was a French-owned railway company which operated a broad gauge, , single track line between the cities of Rosario and Puerto Belgrano in Argentina...
.