
Drachenfelsbahn
After the opening of Europe's first cogwheel mountain railroad, the Rigi-Bahn in Switzerland, in 1871, plans soon arose for the construction of a cogwheel railroad from Königswinter to the Drachenfels.
On August 29, 1881, the Cologne district president granted permission to build the railroad, which was carried out by the Berlin-based Deutsche Lokal- und Straßenbahn Gesellschaft from November 1882 to June 1883. Built according to the system of the engineer Nikolaus Riggenbach (1817 - 1899), the railroad has a length of 1,520 meters and a gradient of 20 percent at the steepest point.
The official acceptance by the police took place on July 7, 1883, the first rides with guests of honor on July 13 and 15, 1883, the ceremonial opening on July 17, 1883. The rack railroad was an attraction from the beginning, attracted many visitors and always made a profit.
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POLICE APPROVAL (July 7, 1883) Among others, the mayor of Königswinter August Mirbach (1808 - 1891), the district administrator Eugen von Loë (1839 - 1911) and the district president Otto von Bernuth (1816 - 1887) were present at the acceptance (sitting in the car on the far left). -
ADVERTISEMENT. Advertisement for the opening of the Drachenfelsbahn on July 17, 1883 in the local newspaper "Echo des Siebengebirges" on July 14, 1883. -
DAMPFLOK ON THE ROAD (1898) The locomotive of each train was always facing downhill, pushing one, two or three preceding cars up the hill. -
VALLEY STATION. At the valley station, in addition to the platform hall, there was the administration building and the locomotive and carriage shed.
1888 – 1897
The success of the Drachenfelsbahn and other mountain railroads on the Rhine attracted financiers for a new project. In 1888, a company was founded to build and operate a rack-and-pinion railroad up the Petersberg.
The Nelles family, who owned the mountain and had a hotel built at the end of the line, was involved. The opening took place on April 20, 1889. The line was 1,750 meters long, with a maximum gradient of 25 percent. The railroad carried passengers and the materials needed to build the hotel. In 1891, the hotel was ready to open. The initial profits turned into losses from 1894.
In 1897, the operating company of the Drachenfelsbahn acquired the majority of the shares and bonds of the Petersbergbahn-Gesellschaft. From then on, one director managed both mountain railroads. Nevertheless, only losses remained at the Petersbergbahn.
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FIRST TRIP OF THE PETERSBERGBAHN (November 12, 1888) The first test trip to Petersberg took place as early as November 12, 1888. -
Postcard detail: HOTEL OF THE NELLES FAMILY ON THE PETERSBERG The hotel built between 1889 and 1891 by the widow of Peter Joseph Nelles and her son Paul Nelles could not meet expectations and went into receivership in 1906. -
DAMPFLOK. Due to the large gradient, a train of the Petersbergbahn was only allowed to consist of the locomotive and a featured car. -
OBLIGATION SCHEIN (1888) To enable the construction and operation of the Petersbergbahn, the Petersberger Zahnradbahn-Gesellschaft issued promissory bills, the repayments of which burdened the balance sheets. -
ADVERTISEMENT (1889) Timetable of the two mountain railroads in the local newspaper "Echo des Siebengebirges" of April 24, 1889.
1912 - 1919
OWNER OF BOTH RAILROADS: FERDINAND MÜLHENS
Ferdinand Mülhens (1844 - 1928) was the owner of the eau-de-Cologne and perfumery factory "4711" from 1873. He owned the Wintermühlenhof family estate at the foot of the Petersberg mountain alone in 1886 after his siblings had been paid off. In Cologne, Mülhens had opened a hotel in 1893, and in the Siebengebirge he planned to build another one on the Wolkenburg. The plan fell through.
In 1911, Ferdinand Mühlens acquired the hotel on the Petersberg from the bankruptcy of the operating company, which he had remodeled. A year later, he bought the two mountain railroads for one million marks. Until the last installment was paid, the meanwhile renamed Allgemeine Lokal- und Straßenbahn Gesellschaft continued to manage the operation.
The opening of the new spa hotel on the Petersberg took place in 1914. After the outbreak of the First World War, tourism collapsed. The Petersbergbahn ceased operations, but the Drachenfelsbahn continued to operate. Mülhens postponed payment of the last installments until the end of 1918. From 1919, he was the owner of both railroads.
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FERDINAND MÜLHENS (1844 - 1928) The entrepreneur Ferdinand Mülhens acquired the hotel on Petersberg in 1911 and the two mountain railroads in 1912. -
4711 EAU DE COLOGNE. The Cologne merchant Wilhelm Mülhens (1762 - 1841), who came from Troisdorf, sold his "Kölnisch Wasser" (cologne) from 1792 - first as a medicinal, then as a perfumed water. -
KURHOTEL AUF DEM PETERSBERG. The Nelles family was unable to keep their hotel on the Petersberg, and a successor company went bankrupt. Ferdinand Mülhens purchased the old hotel in 1911 and had it converted into a spa hotel. The opening took place in 1914. -
WINTERMÜHLENHOF. The estate of Heisterbach Monastery, first mentioned in 1402, was privately owned after secularization in 1803. The Cologne merchant Peter Joseph Mülhens (1801 - 1873), son of Wilhelm Mülhens (1762 - 1841), acquired it in 1840 as a wedding present. His son and heir Ferdinand was able to pay off his siblings until 1886 and was from then on the sole owner.
1921 – 1944
MOUNTAIN RAILROADS IN THE SIEBENGEBIRGE
The relocation of the bottom station of the Petersbergbahn closer to the state railroad station was intended to make it easier for visitors to the Petersberg to use the railroad and thus increase passenger numbers. The extended line was opened in 1921.
It was not until 1921 that all the shares in Petersbergbahn-Gesellschaft had come into the possession of Ferdinand Mülhens. At the shareholders' meeting on June 13, 1923, the now sole shareholder decided to rename the company "Bergbahnen im Siebengebirge AG". In 1924, the employees of both railroads received a common "service dress code".
Between 1926 and 1929, the Bergbahnen ordered five new locomotives. At the same time, following the construction of a motor road up the Petersberg, they agreed to a bus route to the spa hotel from 1928.
After the death of Ferdinand Mülhens in 1928, his son Peter Paul inherited all the companies.
From 1938 onwards, two of the company's own buses mainly took over the transportation of passengers to Petersberg; the railroad only ran on weekends. In the same year, the company sold a locomotive to the Niederwald-Bahn-Gesellschaft.
During the Second World War, the operation of the Petersbergbahn was suspended from 1941, the Drachenfelsbahn continued to operate until 1944. The bus line had already been discontinued in the summer of 1940. Both railroads suffered damage from bombs and artillery.
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OLD VALLEY STATION. Bottom station of the Drachenfelsbahn before reconstruction in the early 1950s. -
PETER PAUL MÜLHENS (1875 - 1945) Peter Paul Mülhens inherited the "4711" company and the mountain railroads in the Siebengebirge in 1928. The world economic crisis in 1929 and the Second World War from 1939 to 1945 presented immense challenges. -
NEW DAMPFLOK. Between 1926 and 1929, the old locomotives of the two mountain railroads were replaced by five new ones. They were transported from the state railway station through Königswinter to the valley stations. In 1938, one of the locomotives was sold to the Niederwaldbahn. -
DRESS REGULATIONS (1924) The merger of the two railroads was also expressed in the common clothing of the employees. -
ADVERTISEMENT (November 1, 1928) Advertisement for the new autobus line in the local newspaper "Echo des Siebengebirges" of November 1, 1928. -
CONNECTION PLAN (ca. 1926) In order to profit from the popularity of the Drachenfelsen, plans were made to connect the two mountain railroads with one track. In 1898, a joint bottom station was planned, but not in the 1920s. The plans remained unchanged.
1945 - 1958
RECONSTRUCTION AND MODERNIZATION
After the death of Peter Paul Mülhens in 1945, his two daughters Maria Mülhens and Luise Streve and his grandson Ferdinand Mülhens III inherited the company in equal shares.
While the Drachenfelsbahn resumed public service in 1947, the Petersbergbahn initially transported only the personnel of the Allies, who had seized the hotel on the Petersberg. The Belgian occupation was followed by the High Commissioners. It was not until 1952 that public service could be resumed here as well.
In 1953, the electrification of the Drachenfelsbahn began with the construction of the overhead line and the first run of a self-built railcar. Since the experience was positive, the mountain railroads ordered four more from a wagon factory, the sixth they built themselves again.
The year 1958 was initially a year of jubilation for the mountain railroads, with the 75th anniversary of the Drachenfelsbahn being celebrated in grand style. Only months later, however, a serious accident occurred when a locomotive jumped off the track on the way down and the cars with the passengers overturned and collided. 17 people were killed and over 100 injured.
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CLOSED TROLLEY. The Petersbergbahn transported the Allied personnel who worked in the hotel on the Petersberg. For winter use, an open car was converted into a closed one and a heating system was installed. -
FIRST ELECTRIC TRYBLE CAR (1953) After electrification had been considered at the beginning of the 20th century, it was realized. The first railcar was built by the company itself, and a further four were ordered from the Waggonfabrik Rastatt with electrical equipment from Brown Boveri & Cie. AG in Mannheim. In 1979, the sixth railcar, again a homebuilt, was put into service. -
ACCIDENT. September 14, 1958 On September 14, 1958, a serious accident occurred: on the last descent of the day, a steam locomotive derailed during a braking maneuver; of the three cars, the first was carried away and the second crashed into it. -
RAILROAD EMPLOYEES. On the occasion of the anniversary in 1958, a series of group photos of the employees was taken in front of a railcar at the mountain station. -
ANNIVERSARY (1958) On the 75th anniversary of the opening of the Drachenfelsbahn celebrated the company. A small publication appeared.
1959 – 1990
THE DRACHENFELSBAHN CONTINUES TO RUN
The accident of 1958 meant the end of steam locomotives. The company ceased operating the unprofitable Petersbergbahn altogether, and only used electric railcars on the Drachenfelsbahn. One of the steam locomotives stands today as a monument in front of the valley station.
The closure of the hotel on the Petersberg in 1969 had an impact on the bus service: Passenger numbers dropped, the service was no longer profitable and was abandoned in 1970.
A new restaurant was built at Drachenfels in the 1970s, and the terminus of the railroad has been single-tracked since then. The middle station of the Drachenfelsbahn was relocated in 1976 to the vicinity of Drachenburg Castle, which has been open to the public since 1973.
When the childless Maria Mehl, née Mülhens, died in 1985, she bequeathed her share in the Drachenfelsbahn to her nephew Dieter, so that the Streve-Mülhens family has been the majority owner of the company ever since.
Since 1990, the locomobile has been traveling from Rheinallee through Königswinter to the valley station.
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LOCOMOTIVE AS A MEMORIAL (1968) After the accident of locomotive 3 II in 1958, locomotive 2 II from 1927 was parked and not put back into service. As a monument of technology, it was given a place in front of the bottom station in 1968. On the occasion of the reconstruction of the valley station it was restored in Poland in 2005 and after its return it was provided with a canopy. -
OMNIBUS (1927 - 1970) With many tourists traveling by car in the 1920s, a road was built to the Petersberg in 1927. Subsequently, an omnibus line from Königswinter to the mountain supplemented the rack railroad. It was discontinued in 1970. -
RELOCATED MID-STATION / REBUILT TERMINUS. Further changes took place in the 1970s. During the construction of the new restaurant at Drachenfels, one of the tracks of the upper station was removed. The middle station, located behind the Nibelungenhalle, was moved closer to the Drachenburg. -
LOGO (1971) -
LOGO (1965) -
LOKOMOBIL. The company purchased the so-called Lokomobil in 1990. It is used for comfortable transportation of passengers from the Königswinter Rheinallee to the valley station of the Drachenfelsbahn, combined with a city tour.
2004 – 2013
REDESIGN
In 2004, Fiona Streve-Mülhens Achenbach acquired Ferdinand Mülhens III's share in the company. Now it is entirely in the hands of the Streve-Mülhens family.
The "Bonn-Berlin Compensation" agreed between the federal government and the region provided funds for regional promotion. One project was the redesign of the valley station of the Drachenfelsbahn. In 2004 and 2005, it was rebuilt and reopened as the "Drachenfels Tourism Station". It now houses the tourist information office of the city of Königswinter and an exhibition on the history of the railroad. The "glass workshop" allows a look behind the scenes. On the upper floor is a model railroad layout of the Drachenfelsbahn as it looked in 1927. The locomotive from the same year set up in front of the bottom station was restored in Poland in 2005.
Within the framework of the NRW support program "Regionale 2010", the middle station was redesigned in 2010 and 2011. On the plateau of the Drachenfelsen, the restaurant from the 1970s was demolished and replaced by a glass cube. The top station was also redesigned in 2012 and 2013.
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DRACHENFELS TOURISM TRAIN STATION (2005) After the renovations from 2004 to 2005, the former open perron hall presents itself as a glazed and light-flooded room in which the region presents itself with its touristic diversity. Access to the railcars of the Drachenfelsbahn is only possible with a valid ticket. -
OPENING (March 31, 2005) The Federal Minister of Economics and Labor, Wolfgang Clement (1940 - 2020), was present at the ceremonial opening of the "Drachenfels Tourist Station" on March 31, 2005. -
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MOUNTAIN STATION (2013) The plateau of the Drachenfels is the last to undergo a transformation. The new terminus of the Drachenfelsbahn, completed in 2013, opens into a colonnade that provides a view southward up the Rhine. -
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MIDDLE STATION (2011) The newly designed midway station was opened on July 3, 2011. It is now equipped with two transparent bus shelters and has a direct access route over the bridge to the outer castle of Villa Schloss Drachenburg. -
MODEL DRACHENFELS RAILROAD. The model installation located on the upper floor of the new valley station can be put into operation by inserting a coin.
2018 - TODAY
GEGENWART
To commemorate the 1958 accident, artist Burkhard Mohr of Königswinter created a Mercurius - the Roman patron saint of travelers - carrying a gear in one hand and the staff of Hermes and two snakes in the other. He embodies the connection between the living and the dead. On September 14, 2018, 60 years after the disaster, the two-meter-high figure and a commemorative plaque were unveiled.
In the pandemic, the railroad had to stop operations in March 2020. This happened repeatedly over the next two years.
The company presented its new celebrity brand ambassador in May 2022: athlete Konstanze Klosterhalfen, who grew up in Königswinter. In July 2022, the "Bergbahnen im Siebengebirge" changed its legal form from an AG (public limited company) to a GmbH (limited liability company), and the owner family has been involved in the daily business ever since.
On July 13, 2023, the mountain railroads celebrated 140 years of Drachenfelsbahn and the 100th anniversary of the company's founding.
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EXHIBITION KLANT. Photographer Christian Klant (*1980) photographed the Drachenfelsbahn with a large-format camera using the collodion wet plate process and presented the images in Königswinter. -
"MERCURIUS" BY BURKHARD MOHR (2018) Burkhard Mohr, born in Cologne in 1959, studied painting and sculpture. Well known are his caricatures, which appear in several daily newspapers. He lives in Königswinter. -
MEMORIAL PLAQUE. The plaque on the building of the bottom station keeps alive the memory of the accident and at the same time reminds to always give the highest priority to the safety of the passengers. -
Pandemic. After the outbreak of the pandemic, in order to resume operations, hygiene measures were of great importance. Employees and passengers wore masks. -
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KLOSTERHALFEN (2022) Born in Bonn in 1997, Konstanze Klosterhalfen is a middle and long-distance runner. She holds numerous German and European youth and junior records and competed in the 2016 and 2021 Olympic Games. In 2022, she won the 5,000-meter race at the European Championships.
