Haapamäki railway station
Encyclopedia
Haapamäki railway station (abbrev. Hpk) is a junction station
in the village of Haapamäki
, in Keuruu
, Finland
. Construction on the railway line from Tampere
to Seinäjoki
via Haapamäki was finished in 1882. When the railway line to Jyväskylä
was built, Haapamäki became a junction station. The fourth line to branch off from Haapamäki was the Pori
line, which was built in the 1930s.
This line saw heavy traffic until the 1970s, since all train
s heading for Ostrobothnia and Jyväskylä went through Haapamäki. The number of trains heading for Ostrobothnia via Haapamäki dropped off in 1971 as a result of the line from Tampere to Seinäjoki via Parkano
being built. The number dropped even further once the Pori line was closed.
and Vaasa
. Originally, the area around the station was sparsely populated wilderness, but a village quickly sprung up around the station. Beautiful log buildings were built for the stationmaster, the railway guard and other railway personnel. At the same time, some of the people building the station settled down permanently in the village and built themselves houses. The railway enticed merchant
s to the town as it offered them a substantial shipping advantage. By the time trains started rolling through the village in 1882, a village with several dozen houses had sprung up around the station. Haapamäki never saw any major industry roll into town, as there were no rapids nearby that could be used to generate energy; nor were there any major waterway
s nearby that could be used for transporting timber
to the station.
and Ruovesi
in the west and Jyväskylä
in the east. The development of the station fell mainly on the shoulders of the Finland's State Railways
, as the municipality refused to do anything. A fear of the village center fading away and the station village developing into the new business center was behind the municipality's decision. Furthermore, the majority of Haapamäki's inhabitants were not originally from Keuruu, which perhaps also caused the original residents to be jealous and resentful.
's Ministry of War felt that this line was strategically important and demanded action to be quickly taken to get it built. Haapamäki became a junction station in 1897 when the line to Jyväskylä was established. Downtown Keuruu was along the new line and a station was built there because of it. The new station was christened Keuruu railway station and so the station in Haapamäki, which had been called Keuruu railway station until that point in time, was renamed Haapamäki railway station.
Haapamäki railway station's transformation into a junction station was a major turning point in the development of the station. The number of the State Railways staff at Haapamäki rose to 200. An enormous staff was required to deal with traffic, rolling stock
, and the tracks themselves around the clock. Traffic was run from the station, which had several clerks and other workers working there. In addition to the engineer
and conductor, trains had a lot of other staff on them, as well. The central storehouse for wood used as fuel for the steam locomotive
s was located in Haapamäki; this provided work for many locals. The wood was hauled to the station's wood yard by sled
ge from the surrounding forests and some were even shipped from nearby stations by train. Chopping the wood and loading it into the tender required a large workforce. One load of wood was enough for a train to reach the next loading point after Haapamäki, which were Seinäjoki
, Jyväskylä
, or Tampere
in this case. The water tower supplied water for the engines to use to create steam and the depot was used for more demanding maintenance. Workers were required year-round to keept the track in shape. In winter, snow was removed from the tracks and in the summertime, the sleepers
were changed and workers ensured that the track was sound enough for trains to run on it.
The livelihood of the State Railways staff was stable, which encouraged an ever increasing number of professionals in other sectors to move to Haapamäki. The village continued to grow despite the fact that it had no industry to speak of and business was not very profitable. One of the major barriers to developing business was the free tickets that railway workers received and that they used to go to town to do business and shop.
A significant step in the development of Haapamäki railway station was the construction of the Haapamäki–Pori line in the beginning of the 1930s. Due to increased traffic, additional tracks were built on the west side of the railway yard. At the same time, the level crossing
north of the station was removed and a flyover
was built for the road. Thanks to the Pori line, it was possible for trains to head in four different directions from Haapamäki, which was rare in Finland at that point in time. Thus the number of staff grew and more construction was needed. The depot was enlarged and the wood yard expanded. The Finnish State Railway had a four-story brick building built near the station with 24 apartments for railroad workers. At the same time, a large number of single-family houses were built around the station and 40 single-family houses were built in the Kumpulampi section of the village. Thanks to the new line, the station rose in the ranks, which also affected the increases in the wages that staff received.
Soon after the Pori line was built, plans were laid to build a line between Haapamäki and Saarijärvi
. The Finnish Defence Forces
and Members of Parliament from Central Finland
stood behind the project because they felt that it was important and it would shorten the trip south of the Haapamäki-Jyväskylä line by 100 km, which would also make it possible to reach Tampere via Haapamäki without having to go through Jyväskylä first. The project was pushed by MP Taavi Vilhula and the proposal was quickly passed in Parliament. The line was marked out in the terrain at the end of the 1930s with one of the most important stations along the way being Multia, which was where MP Vilhula was from. The eruption of World War II
, however, caused construction on the line to stop and the severe war reparations that Finland had to pay put a damper on further construction for a long time even once the war was over. The decision to build the line was finally shelved when plans to build a direct line between Jyväskylä and Jämsä were launched.
Haapamäki's new station building was completed in 1897. It was designed by Bruno Granholm
and represents the Romantic Nationalist
style. Separate waiting rooms were built for second and third class passengers. A restaurant occupied one end of the building and both passengers and locals dine there. Up until the beginning of the 1900s, passenger trains stopped in Haapamäki for approximately 30 minutes so passengers could refresh themselves in the restaurant.
Due to growing demand, the Finland's State Railways
had a separate station restaurant built north of the station building proper in the 1940s. The new two-storey restaurant building had a dining area and a kitchen downstairs and staff rooms upstairs. The 1940s were good for the restaurant, as there were still relatively few cars and as the Karelian evacuees traveled a lot. The restaurant's popularity fell off sharply, however, mainly due to an ever increasing number of people traveling in private cars, which in turn meant that fewer people took the train. Also, schedules were tightened in order to remain competitive with car travel, allowing less time for a relaxed meal. The restaurant saw its business drop even farther once beer could freely be sold in coffee shops. In addition, the restaurant being open at night due to train traffic meant that the great majority of customers were drinking alcohol, which, in turn, made the experience less enjoyable and finally ended up being the reason for the restaurant closing down.
The title for stationmasters at Haapamäki railway station has been head of the traffic area since 1968.
Junction station
Junction station usually refers to a railway station situated or close to a junction where lines to several destinations diverge. The usual minimum is three incoming lines...
in the village of Haapamäki
Haapamäki
Haapamäki is a village in the municipality of Keuruu, Finland. It is historically an important meeting point of major railway lines, which converge at Haapamäki railway station....
, in Keuruu
Keuruu
Keuruu is a town and municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Western Finland and is part of the Central Finland region.The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
. Construction on the railway line from Tampere
Tampere
Tampere is a city in southern Finland. It is the most populous inland city in any of the Nordic countries. The city has a population of , growing to approximately 300,000 people in the conurbation and over 340,000 in the metropolitan area. Tampere is the third most-populous municipality in...
to Seinäjoki
Seinäjoki
Seinäjoki is a city located in Southern Ostrobothnia, Finland. Seinäjoki originated around the Östermyra bruk iron and gunpowder factories founded in 1798. Seinäjoki became a municipality in 1868, market town in 1931 and town in 1960...
via Haapamäki was finished in 1882. When the railway line to Jyväskylä
Jyväskylä
Jyväskylä is the capital of Central Finland and the largest city on the Finnish Lakeland, north-east of Tampere and north of Helsinki, on northern coast of lake Päijänne. The city has been continuously one of the most rapidly growing cities in Finland since World War II. The city is surrounded...
was built, Haapamäki became a junction station. The fourth line to branch off from Haapamäki was the Pori
Pori
Pori is a city and municipality on the west coast of Finland. The city is located some from the Gulf of Bothnia, on the estuary of the Kokemäenjoki river, which is the largest in Finland. Pori is the most important town in the Satakunta region....
line, which was built in the 1930s.
This line saw heavy traffic until the 1970s, since all train
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
s heading for Ostrobothnia and Jyväskylä went through Haapamäki. The number of trains heading for Ostrobothnia via Haapamäki dropped off in 1971 as a result of the line from Tampere to Seinäjoki via Parkano
Parkano
Parkano is a town and municipality in Finland.It is located north of Tampere in the province of Western Finland, and is part of the Pirkanmaa region. The population of Parkano is and the municipality covers an area of of which is inland water...
being built. The number dropped even further once the Pori line was closed.
Construction
Haapamäki railway station was built over a two-year period, from 1880 to 1882. At the same time, construction was being started on a rail line between TampereTampere
Tampere is a city in southern Finland. It is the most populous inland city in any of the Nordic countries. The city has a population of , growing to approximately 300,000 people in the conurbation and over 340,000 in the metropolitan area. Tampere is the third most-populous municipality in...
and Vaasa
Vaasa
Vaasa is a city on the west coast of Finland. It received its charter in 1606, during the reign of Charles IX of Sweden and is named after the Royal House of Vasa...
. Originally, the area around the station was sparsely populated wilderness, but a village quickly sprung up around the station. Beautiful log buildings were built for the stationmaster, the railway guard and other railway personnel. At the same time, some of the people building the station settled down permanently in the village and built themselves houses. The railway enticed merchant
Merchant
A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
s to the town as it offered them a substantial shipping advantage. By the time trains started rolling through the village in 1882, a village with several dozen houses had sprung up around the station. Haapamäki never saw any major industry roll into town, as there were no rapids nearby that could be used to generate energy; nor were there any major waterway
Waterway
A waterway is any navigable body of water. Waterways can include rivers, lakes, seas, oceans, and canals. In order for a waterway to be navigable, it must meet several criteria:...
s nearby that could be used for transporting timber
Timber
Timber may refer to:* Timber, a term common in the United Kingdom and Australia for wood materials * Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S...
to the station.
Early stages
Until the end of the 1800s, Haapamäki railway station's development was quite modest; this was, above all, due to the inability of the merchants to use the railway to their advantage and the municipality's reluctance to develop the station village, which was located far from downtown Keuruu. No wholesale trade ever developed as all the merchants focussed their efforts on retail sales, which proved not to be very profitable in such a small village. In that sense, Haapamäki was geographically in a favorable place for wholesaling as it would have been easy to competitively ship goods to VirratVirrat
Virrat is a town and municipality of Finland.It is part of the Pirkanmaa region. The town has a population of and covers an area of ofwhich is water. The population density is.The municipality is unilingually Finnish...
and Ruovesi
Ruovesi
Ruovesi is a municipality of Finland.It is located in the Pirkanmaa region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is .The municipality is unilingually Finnish....
in the west and Jyväskylä
Jyväskylä
Jyväskylä is the capital of Central Finland and the largest city on the Finnish Lakeland, north-east of Tampere and north of Helsinki, on northern coast of lake Päijänne. The city has been continuously one of the most rapidly growing cities in Finland since World War II. The city is surrounded...
in the east. The development of the station fell mainly on the shoulders of the Finland's State Railways
VR Group
VR or VR Group is a state-owned railway company in Finland. Formerly known as Suomen Valtion Rautatiet until 1922 and Valtionrautatiet / Statsjärnvägarna until 1995...
, as the municipality refused to do anything. A fear of the village center fading away and the station village developing into the new business center was behind the municipality's decision. Furthermore, the majority of Haapamäki's inhabitants were not originally from Keuruu, which perhaps also caused the original residents to be jealous and resentful.
Becoming a junction station
In spite of everything, the area around the station grew faster than downtown Keuruu did. State Railways continually built new housing for its growing staff. As Haapamäki became a junction station, the yard was expanded and a locomotive depot and water tower were built. The track connecting the Ostrobothnian line with the Savo line had already been planned for a long time, but quarrelling about the line pushed back construction. RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
's Ministry of War felt that this line was strategically important and demanded action to be quickly taken to get it built. Haapamäki became a junction station in 1897 when the line to Jyväskylä was established. Downtown Keuruu was along the new line and a station was built there because of it. The new station was christened Keuruu railway station and so the station in Haapamäki, which had been called Keuruu railway station until that point in time, was renamed Haapamäki railway station.
Haapamäki railway station's transformation into a junction station was a major turning point in the development of the station. The number of the State Railways staff at Haapamäki rose to 200. An enormous staff was required to deal with traffic, rolling stock
Rolling stock
Rolling stock comprises all the vehicles that move on a railway. It usually includes both powered and unpowered vehicles, for example locomotives, railroad cars, coaches and wagons...
, and the tracks themselves around the clock. Traffic was run from the station, which had several clerks and other workers working there. In addition to the engineer
Railroad engineer
A railroad engineer, locomotive engineer, train operator, train driver or engine driver is a person who drives a train on a railroad...
and conductor, trains had a lot of other staff on them, as well. The central storehouse for wood used as fuel for 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 was located in Haapamäki; this provided work for many locals. The wood was hauled to the station's wood yard by sled
Sled
A sled, sledge, or sleigh is a land vehicle with a smooth underside or possessing a separate body supported by two or more smooth, relatively narrow, longitudinal runners that travels by sliding across a surface. Most sleds are used on surfaces with low friction, such as snow or ice. In some cases,...
ge from the surrounding forests and some were even shipped from nearby stations by train. Chopping the wood and loading it into the tender required a large workforce. One load of wood was enough for a train to reach the next loading point after Haapamäki, which were Seinäjoki
Seinäjoki
Seinäjoki is a city located in Southern Ostrobothnia, Finland. Seinäjoki originated around the Östermyra bruk iron and gunpowder factories founded in 1798. Seinäjoki became a municipality in 1868, market town in 1931 and town in 1960...
, Jyväskylä
Jyväskylä
Jyväskylä is the capital of Central Finland and the largest city on the Finnish Lakeland, north-east of Tampere and north of Helsinki, on northern coast of lake Päijänne. The city has been continuously one of the most rapidly growing cities in Finland since World War II. The city is surrounded...
, or Tampere
Tampere
Tampere is a city in southern Finland. It is the most populous inland city in any of the Nordic countries. The city has a population of , growing to approximately 300,000 people in the conurbation and over 340,000 in the metropolitan area. Tampere is the third most-populous municipality in...
in this case. The water tower supplied water for the engines to use to create steam and the depot was used for more demanding maintenance. Workers were required year-round to keept the track in shape. In winter, snow was removed from the tracks and in the summertime, the sleepers
Rail tracks
The track on a railway or railroad, also known as the permanent way, is the structure consisting of the rails, fasteners, sleepers and ballast , plus the underlying subgrade...
were changed and workers ensured that the track was sound enough for trains to run on it.
The livelihood of the State Railways staff was stable, which encouraged an ever increasing number of professionals in other sectors to move to Haapamäki. The village continued to grow despite the fact that it had no industry to speak of and business was not very profitable. One of the major barriers to developing business was the free tickets that railway workers received and that they used to go to town to do business and shop.
A significant step in the development of Haapamäki railway station was the construction of the Haapamäki–Pori line in the beginning of the 1930s. Due to increased traffic, additional tracks were built on the west side of the railway yard. At the same time, the level crossing
Level 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...
north of the station was removed and a flyover
Overpass
An overpass is a bridge, road, railway or similar structure that crosses over another road or railway...
was built for the road. Thanks to the Pori line, it was possible for trains to head in four different directions from Haapamäki, which was rare in Finland at that point in time. Thus the number of staff grew and more construction was needed. The depot was enlarged and the wood yard expanded. The Finnish State Railway had a four-story brick building built near the station with 24 apartments for railroad workers. At the same time, a large number of single-family houses were built around the station and 40 single-family houses were built in the Kumpulampi section of the village. Thanks to the new line, the station rose in the ranks, which also affected the increases in the wages that staff received.
Soon after the Pori line was built, plans were laid to build a line between Haapamäki and Saarijärvi
Saarijärvi
Saarijärvi is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located in the province of Western Finland and is part of the Central Finland region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of ofwhich is water. The population density is....
. The Finnish Defence Forces
Finnish Defence Forces
The Finnish Defence Forces are responsible for the defence of Finland. It is a cadre army of 15,000, of which 8,900 are professional soldiers , extended with conscripts and reservists such that the standard readiness strength is 34,700 people in uniform...
and Members of Parliament from Central Finland
Central Finland
Central Finland is a region in Finland. It borders to the regions Päijänne Tavastia, Pirkanmaa, Southern Ostrobothnia, Central Ostrobothnia, Northern Ostrobothnia, Northern Savonia and Southern Savonia....
stood behind the project because they felt that it was important and it would shorten the trip south of the Haapamäki-Jyväskylä line by 100 km, which would also make it possible to reach Tampere via Haapamäki without having to go through Jyväskylä first. The project was pushed by MP Taavi Vilhula and the proposal was quickly passed in Parliament. The line was marked out in the terrain at the end of the 1930s with one of the most important stations along the way being Multia, which was where MP Vilhula was from. The eruption of World War II
World 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...
, however, caused construction on the line to stop and the severe war reparations that Finland had to pay put a damper on further construction for a long time even once the war was over. The decision to build the line was finally shelved when plans to build a direct line between Jyväskylä and Jämsä were launched.
Buildings
The first station building was built at the beginning of the 1880s and it started to be used for that purpose in 1882 when trains started running between Tampere and Vaasa. The building was located on the west end of the railway yard. When Haapamäki became a junction station after the christening of the line to Jyväskylä, a new station building was built on the east end of the yard. The old station was turned into a house for the stationmaster. An expansive park was next to it; this park was called Gröndahl's Park after the stationmaster at the time. When the railway yard was expanded to accommodate the line to Pori in 1937, the park was razed and the old station building dismantled. It is said that Gröndahl sent 2,000 plant species and varieties to the Botanic Garden of the University of Helsinki.Haapamäki's new station building was completed in 1897. It was designed by Bruno Granholm
Bruno Granholm
Bruno Ferdinand Granholm was a Finnish architect. He served as the chief architect of Rautatiehallitus between 1892 and 1926...
and represents the Romantic Nationalist
Romantic nationalism
Romantic nationalism is the form of nationalism in which the state derives its political legitimacy as an organic consequence of the unity of those it governs...
style. Separate waiting rooms were built for second and third class passengers. A restaurant occupied one end of the building and both passengers and locals dine there. Up until the beginning of the 1900s, passenger trains stopped in Haapamäki for approximately 30 minutes so passengers could refresh themselves in the restaurant.
Due to growing demand, the Finland's State Railways
VR Group
VR or VR Group is a state-owned railway company in Finland. Formerly known as Suomen Valtion Rautatiet until 1922 and Valtionrautatiet / Statsjärnvägarna until 1995...
had a separate station restaurant built north of the station building proper in the 1940s. The new two-storey restaurant building had a dining area and a kitchen downstairs and staff rooms upstairs. The 1940s were good for the restaurant, as there were still relatively few cars and as the Karelian evacuees traveled a lot. The restaurant's popularity fell off sharply, however, mainly due to an ever increasing number of people traveling in private cars, which in turn meant that fewer people took the train. Also, schedules were tightened in order to remain competitive with car travel, allowing less time for a relaxed meal. The restaurant saw its business drop even farther once beer could freely be sold in coffee shops. In addition, the restaurant being open at night due to train traffic meant that the great majority of customers were drinking alcohol, which, in turn, made the experience less enjoyable and finally ended up being the reason for the restaurant closing down.
Stationmasters
The following individuals have served as stationmasters at Haapamäki railway station:- Johan Edvard Bengelsdorf, November 1, 1883 – August 1, 1889
- Karl Alex Richter, September 1, 1889 – May 1, 1897
- Artur Eugen Hammarström, June 1, 1897 – September 8, 1897
- August Vilhelm Söderberg, December 1, 1897 – June 22, 1901
- Isak Arvid Esko, August 1, 1901 – February 24, 1908
- Karl Jakob Cajanus, July 1, 1908 – January 1, 1911
- Edvin Vilhelm Lindberg, September 1, 1913 – July 1, 1915
- Solmu Jokipaltio, October 1, 1915 – October 1, 1925
- Oskar Alvar Gröndahl, March 1, 1926 – January 30, 1934
- Eino Vilhelm von Essen, September 1, 1934 – January 24, 1938
- Aarne Lennart Hartman, May 1, 1938 – September 30, 1950
- Erkki Eero Seppänen, November 1, 1951 – December 31, 1955
- Orvo Ilari Laine, June 1, 1956 – November 30, 1966
- Osmo Jokipaltio, February 1, 1968 – May 31, 1978
- Kallis Anton Krogerus, August 1, 1978 – March 31, 1983
- Matti Päiviö Ahola, January 1, 1985 –
The title for stationmasters at Haapamäki railway station has been head of the traffic area since 1968.