über uns	Historisches

TheHarz Narrow-Gauge Railways can look back over a long history. They were set up at the end of the last century to link the Harz region, with its mineral resources, its abundance of timber and its small industry, with the rising economic power, Germany and to encourage the emerging market for tourism.

There were originally three companies who tapped the Harz region by narrow-gauge rail:

• 1886 was founded Gernrode-Harzgerode Railway Company (GHE);
• 1896 followed nbahn Nordhausen-Wernigerode Railway Company(NWE) and, finally
• 1897 was established between Southern Harz Railway Walkenried - Braunlage.

This helped to give narrow-gauge rail transport the overall advantage, especially as it was this option was more cost-efficient and "easier" to establish in practical terms in view of the awkward nature of the surroundings. The railways had been connected by 1913. The present-day Harz Narrow-Gauge Railways alone, comprising the Harzquer and Mount Brocken railway service and the Selketal railway service, operate a network which extends over 130 km, which, besides, was and still is linked at numerous points with various railwys in Harz and the adjacent areas. The Southern Harz Railway failed to make it through the troubled times; it did not survive the division of the Eastern Harz narrow-gauge rail network brought about when the border was established between East Germany and West Germany. GHE and NWE were taken over by Deutsche Reichsbahn in 1949 and operated by DR until 31.1.1993.

This sequences of change was brought to an end for the time being when a private limited company of operators was set up in March 1991. This company was Harzer Schmalspurbahnen GmbH (Harz Narrow-Gauge Railways) which has been providing regional support to run the railways since 1.2.1993 as a private limited company within the public sector. The HSB's task is to