Anatolian Railway heritage and its preservation

Bu çalışma, Osmanlı İmparatorluğu’nda 1872-1896 yılları arasında Haydarpaşa’dan Konya’ya inşa edilen Anadolu Demiryolu’na ait yapıların koruma sorunlarını incelemektedir. Bu makalede, öncelikli olarak demiryolu mirasının ne olduğu ve Anadolu Demiryolu’na ait yapılardan hangilerinin bu kavram altında ele alınmaları gerektiği tartışılmış ve bu yapıları bekleyen tehlikeler incelenmiştir. Araştırmada Anadolu Demiryolu’na ait özgün yapı programı (yolcu binaları, mal depoları, bekçi kulübeleri, lojmanlar, su depoları, lokomotif depoları, helâlar, köprüler, geçit bariyerleri vb.) özgün çizimleri ile tespit edilmiş, mevcut demiryolu yapılarından hangilerinin özgün planlamanın parçası olduğu belgelenmiştir. Demiryolu yapılarının ait oldukları dönemin tespit edilmesi, karmaşık görünümdeki demiryolu yapılarının sınıflandırılmasına yardımcı olmaktadır. Buradan elde edilen sonuçlar, sahip olunan demiryolu mirasının niteliğini ortaya koymaktadır. Yapılan incelemelerde, koruma kapsamı altına alınmış olan demiryolu yapılarının büyük bir çoğunluğunu yolcu binaları ve lojmanların oluşturduğu görülmüştür. Demiryolu mirası bilinci henüz yaygınlaşmadığından su deposu, mal deposu, lokomotif deposu, atölye, vb. yapıların daha seyrek olarak tescil edildikleri gözlemlenmiştir. Ancak demiryolu mirasının tümünü kapsayan sistemli bir envanter çalışmasına ihtiyaç duyulmaktadır. Bilindiği üzere ülkemizdeki kültür varlığı niteliği taşıyan yapıların korunmalarında çeşitli güçlükler yaşanmaktadır. Demiryolu yapılarının sürece bağlı tahribatları dışında Marmaray, kentsel dönüşüm projeleri ve hızlı tren projeleri gibi son yıllarda gündeme gelen büyük projeler, Anadolu Demiryolu mirasının büyük bir hızla tahrip olmasına neden olacak niteliktedir. Bu çalışmada söz konusu projelerin korunmaya değer nitelikteki demiryolu mirasını nasıl etkileyeceği ve koruma önerileri konu edilmiştir. Anahtar Kelimeler: Anadolu Demiryolu, demiryolu mirası, koruma, Haydarpaşa.The awareness for the preservation of railways started to emerge after many of the railways operating at the coal mines in England were closed in the late 1960’s. Great reactions came from the society and it was only after then, the preservation of the railways became a reality. In 1977 the exhibition SAVE Britain’s Heritage had a section on railways called the “Off the Rails”. After this exhibition, in 1980 for the first time Manchester Central Station was given a new function instead of being demolished. As of 1997, 60 railway lines are preserved and by 2003, more than 2000 railway buildings are under protection in England. Today, railway heritage is considered along with industrial heritage and industrial archeology yet, the remnants of the historic railways are examined to a greater extent as the railway heritage. This research has focused on the preservation problems of the railway buildings of the Anatolian Railway built in 1872-1896 from Haydarpaşa to Konya. Its first section that of Haydarpaşa to İzmit was built  and  directed by the Ottomans until 1880. Then, it was rented out to a British Company for 20 years. However their existence as tenants lasted until 1888 when it was taken over by the Germans. With the concession given in 1889, the line was extended to Ankara in 1893 and to Konya in 1896. In this paper first, the railway heritage of the Anatolian Railway has been documented. The affects of the railway and its interaction with the city have been analyzed. It has been observed that the settlements re-acted in a similar way when the railway passed by. Prior to its arrival the land prices increased and in many instances the government was obliged to intervene. The population started to increase therefore new accommodation needs aroused. Settlements built after the arrival of the railway tended to be in geometrical order and in many cases immigrants were accommodated. Soon the station was connected with the city center via “Station Avenue” along which commercial activities were flourished. Station neighborhoods facilitated new buildings such as hotels, banks, schools, depots, community centers etc. between Gebze–Konya. Where as, along Haydarpaşa–Gebze section the station centers were furnished by waqf endowments; such as mosque, school and supported by commercial buildings in order to provide income for the vaqf. Furthermore the housing, which was typically mansions in large gardens, was dispersed along the railway. This type of settling turned the area from Kızıltoprak to Pendik to a suburb, where high rank Ottoman officials started to live through out the year. Today the original historic architecture of the Anatolian Railway is undistinguishable because there have been several interventions and additions. The historic documents are very rare which could help dating the buildings. One such rare document, the “The Anatolian Railway Construction Company İzmit-Ankara Contract” published in 1889 reveals the building program of the Anatolian Railway. It has been understood that building types based on classes were designed and applied. Other than stations, merchandize depots, night watchers huts, lodgments, water depots, engine sheds, toilets, bridges, barriers etc. has been acknowledged with their original drawings. It is argued that the remnants of this system should be named as the “Anatolian Railway Heritage” and preserved accordingly. However, it has been observed that awareness for the preservation of the railway heritage is not yet widely established in Turkey. For example along the Haydarpaşa-Gebze section, 27 railway buildings, of which 11 are, station buildings that are registered. On the other hand along the Gebze-Ankara section 55 buildings, of which 14 are station buildings that are registered. Buildings and equipment other than the station buildings are less favored as cultural and historical asset. Meanwhile the maintenance and/or preservation of the historic railway buildings are neglected since the beginning of the 2000’s. The inadequacy in registrations seems to be a big problem, yet bigger threats are extant for the Anatolian Railway Heritage; such as the Marmaray and Urban Regeneration Projects (Haydarpaşa & Kartal), reuse of the railway buildings, Fast Train Project between İstanbul and Ankara etc. The constraints of these projects are such that they leave the railway buildings abandoned and/or change function. Keywords: Anatolian Railway, railway heritage, preservation, Haydarpaşa, reuse.&nbsp