Rail transport in Belize

Old railway bridge along the Hummingbird Highway

There is no active rail transport in Belize, although there were lines in the past.

Overview

An 1888 map (British Honduras, Usher, 1888) identifies a number of proposed routes for a Belize (city) to Guatemala Railway.

A 1920's map, Railroad Map of British Honduras identifies five railways / tramways:

1. Belize Estate & Produce Co Ltd (Gallon Jug Railway), located in Belize District, north west of Belize City, off Black Creek.[1]
2. Victoria Falls Lumber Co, located in Belize District, north west of Belize City, off Old River.
3. British Honduras Syndicate Tramway, located in Stann Creek District, Stann Creek to Melinda.
4. Stann Creek Railway, located in Stann Creek District, Stann Creek to Middlesex.[2]
5. Tramway - Swasey Branch with Sennis River, located in Toledo District.

The 1920's map shows a single proposed line from Belize to Guatemala, the Belize to Peten Railroad.

A Brief History of Pomona and the North Stann Creek Valley, taking information from the David Rollinson book, states the number of former railways in Belize as (at least) eight:

1. Stann Creek Railway.
2. Vaca Falls Railway (between Vaca Falls and Chiquibul Forest).
3. Gallon Jug Railway.[1]
4. One near Punta Gorda.
5. One at Monkey River.
6. Two (at least) in northern Belize.
7. A short line at Mango Creek.

Map of British Honduras, 1965, showing Stann Creek Railway

A 1965 map (see right) shows the route of the Stann Creek Railway.

Historically, one of the major railways in Belize was the Stann Creek Railway[2][3][4] used by United Fruit, which connected Middlesex Estate with the port of Dangriga. The railway was 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge, and operated from 1913 till 1937, when it was abandoned. Many remains are still visible along the Hummingbird Highway (between Dangriga and Belmopan). This road uses some of the old railway bridges, though they are gradually disappearing as bridges are modernized.

Belize Estate & Produce Co Ltd railway ran from Hill Bank, at the south end of a lagoon on the New River, west through Sierra de Agua to Gallon Jug, an abandoned community about 10 km from the Guatemala border.[4][1]

There have been no railway connections to other countries.

See also

• Belize
• Transport in Belize

References

1. Miller, Carolyn M (25 February 2010). "Hillbank Rail History". Belize Field Notes. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
2. Moberg, Mark (1996). "Crown Colony as Banana Republic: The United Fruit Company in British Honduras, 1900-1920". Journal of Latin American Studies. 28 (2): 357–381. doi:10.1017/S0022216X00013043. ISSN 0022-216X. JSTOR 157625.
3. "Belize Trains & Railways". Guide to Belize.info. Archived from the original on 30 January 2023. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
4. "Lost Railroads of Belize". Ambergris Caye Belize Message Board. Retrieved 2024-06-23.

External links

• Railways and Trains in Belize. A Guide to the Past with facts, pictures and background information to the Belize railway history.
• History of Belize with a mention of the railway and a picture with a train in Dangriga port.
• stanncreekvalley with details of the Stan Creek Railway and reference to 'other railways in British Honduras' (from David Rollinson book).
• Usher Map of British Honduras 1888 shows proposed routes for the Belize to Guatemala railway.
• Railroad Map of British Honduras 1920's map on the Library of Congress website.
• Hillbank Railway History includes a map of that railway.

Further reading

• Railways of the Caribbean by David Rollinson (2001, Macmillan, Oxford England) ISBN 0-333-73042-9 (see link)
• A brief History of Pomona and the North Stann Creek Valley by Javan Chavarria ISBN 978-154685360-2, available online [1]