July 21, 2025, 4:25 am | Read time: 5 minutes
The small town of Vienenburg near Goslar in Lower Saxony is a true mecca for railway enthusiasts. It is home to the oldest surviving train station in all of Germany. Built in 1840, it made the town a stop on the route of the first German state railway and an important hub for the mining industry in the region. Yet, it is mainly thanks to a dedicated association that the oldest station in the country still exists today. TRAVELBOOK author Robin Hartmann tells its story.
Overview
Regular visitors to TRAVELBOOK may have noticed: I am a huge fan of the Harz Mountains, where I go hiking several times a year. My passion has led me to many beautiful and often historically significant places. Sometimes, even chance lends a hand. Recently, I traveled to the region around Goslar in the northwestern Harz for a multi-day tour. During a stop in the small town of Vienenburg, my heart suddenly raced, as a story was practically handed to me on a silver platter. When my train briefly stopped, I spotted a sign: “Vienenburg: Germany’s Oldest Surviving Train Station.”
Upon returning from my 100-kilometer trek, a quick online search yielded several results. Some niche websites for railway enthusiasts recounted a success story that began 185 years ago, as well as the fortunate circumstance that the Vienenburg station still exists today. Once a central hub for the mining industry in the region, it was nearly demolished 40 years ago. That it turned out differently, and that visitors can still see and visit the venerable building today, is thanks to a few dedicated locals.
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A call to the Vienenburg Railway Museum brought me what we journalists perhaps love most: a hot lead, a contact with Robert Oppermann. He is the first chairman of the Association for the Promotion of the Vienenburg Railway Museum. Indeed, one evening in late June 2025, he took a whole hour to tell me in detail about Germany’s oldest surviving train station and its remarkable history. Much of it he can recite from memory, the rest comes from his impressive collection of books and archives.
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“The Vienenburg station has existed since 1840,” Oppermann said. “On August 10 of that year, it opened as a stop on the route from Braunschweig to Wolfenbüttel. That was something special at the time, as it was one of the first railway lines in Germany.” The builder was the Brunswick State Railway, which significantly expanded both the building and the connections in the following decades. From 1843, Vienenburg was also an important stop on the journey to the spa town of Bad Harzburg. Until that year, trains pulled by horses still ran alongside steam trains on the routes.
Station with Imperial Hall and 17 Tracks
“Vienenburg was strategically well-located and functioned not only for passenger traffic but especially for freight traffic. For example, there was a line to Oker to connect the smelting plants there.” At that time, salt was mined in Vienenburg itself, which could also be transported by rail. Oppermann had to briefly stand up to research a number more precisely. You could hear him murmur briefly on the phone, then he said, apparently a bit surprised himself: “At its peak, during its heyday, the station had 17 tracks.” Today, only two remain. The success story of Germany’s oldest surviving station lasted “only” about 100 years.
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Initially, the station was continuously expanded, and in 1888 it even received its own “Imperial Hall” for the reception of important personalities. Whether a royal ever visited is unknown to Oppermann. However, the decline of the Vienenburg station was unstoppable. After the end of World War II, it suddenly lay in the inner-German border area from 1949, which significantly restricted freight traffic. “As early as 1953, the first reductions were made to the building. The closure of the line from Vienenburg to Halberstadt was the final death knell for freight traffic.”
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Renovation Instead of Demolition
And so, in 1988, Germany’s oldest surviving station faced demolition. Fortunately, things turned out differently. “At the start of the work, the building’s former exterior cladding was uncovered. This revealed its age, and the town of Vienenburg then purchased it. By that time, it was already severely dilapidated and required extensive renovation.” That same year, the Association for the Promotion of the Vienenburg Railway Museum was founded. It is thanks to this group that the museum of the same name was established. “Here, you can see collectibles, much historical information–and an authentic model railway.” The association also dared to take on larger projects.
“We have recreated real old track systems and even acquired our own steam locomotive. From Vienenburg, we start special trips annually with it or other rented trains.” They have traveled as far as Berlin or Sylt, and on the 2023 tour to Erfurt, 500 guests participated. At the end of our conversation, Oppermann invited me to visit Germany’s oldest surviving station and its museum in person soon. It is open on the first Sunday of every month from 1-5 p.m. Admission is three euros for adults and 1.50 euros for children. Tours are also available. The invitation is warmly extended to you, dear readers, as well.