History of the railways of Romincka Forest
The Romincka Forest was crossed by two railway lines with the so-called “normal gauge” (normalspur) – 1435 mm:
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- Stallupönen (Stallupönen/Ebenrode, now Nesterov) - Goldap;
- Gumbinnen (now Gusev) - Schittkehmen (Wehrkirchen, now Żytkiejmy) - Goldap.
Both lines crossed at the junction station Tollmingkehmen (Tollmingen, now Chistye Prudy).
The railway was supposed to connect remote areas of the province, attract new residents, and revive the Prussian outskirts.
The first steam locomotive appeared in the Romincka Forest 40 years after the Imperial Railway connected Königsberg with the eastern edge of the province, Stallupönen.
The appearance of the railway in Rominta influenced many aspects of life in both the Pushcha and its villages: the development of trade with an increase in the growth of transportation, communications, and the improvement of public life. It is worth noting at least the fact that the residence.
After the end of World War II, the Gumbinnen-Schittkemen line was considered unnecessary, having lost its significance (due to the division of East Prussian lands between the USSR and Poland) and in 1945-1946 the line was dismantled. The Stallupönen-Goldap line was partially preserved on the section Stallupönen (Nesterov) - Gross Rominten (Krasnolesye, up to the sand quarry on the outskirts of the village). The rest was dismantled. Accordingly, the last section of the railway in the Rominten Forest between Schittkemen and Goldap was also dismantled by 1950 due to the loss of integrity of the tracks.
At various times, there were also narrow-gauge railways of local importance in Romint:
Tollmingkemen - Mehlkehmen (Birkenmühle) - Nassawen
Gross Rominten (Hardteck) - Iszlaudszen (Schönheide)
Pilluponen (Schlossbach) - Wystiten
Goldap - Dubeningken (Dubeningen) - Schittkemen.
Stations, terminals and stopping points on the railway lines of Romincka Pushcha*
Junction station: Tollmingkemen
Stalluponen - Goldap line:
Stallupönen (Ebenrode) - Göritten (Göritten) - Rudszen (Talfriede) - Pilluponen (Pillupönen/Schlossbach) - Podszohnen (Buschfelde) - Kassuben (Kassuben) - Tollmingkehmen (Tollmingen) - Makunischken (Hohenwaldeck) - Gross Rominten (Hardteck) - Trakischken (Hohenrode) - Gross Kummetschen (Hermeshof) - Goldap
Gumbinnen - Schittkemen - Goldap line:
Gumbinnen - Plicken - Perkallen (Perkallen/Husarenberg) - Walterkehmen (Walterkehmen/Grosswaltersdorf) - Meldinen (Meldienen/Gnadenheim) - Tollmingkehmen (Tollmingen) - Schackummen (Schackummen/Eichkamp) - Mehlkehmen (Mehlkehmen/Birkenmühle) - Nassawen - Kuiken (Kuiken/Albrechtsrode) - Schittkehmen (Wehrkirchen) - Keppurdeggen (Kühlberg) - Pablindszen (Pablindschen)/Zollteich - Gollubien (Gollubien/Unterfelde) - Blindgallen (Blindgallen/Schneegrund) — Dubeningken (Dubeningken/Dubeningen) — Meschkrupchen (Meschkrupchen/Meschen) — Rakowken (Rakowken/Stoltznersdorf) — Buttkuhnen (Buttkuhnen/Bodenhausen) — Goldap.
* in brackets are the German names of settlements before 1938 and after the renaming in 1938
