Ashbury Railway Carriage JMR: Spanish lounge car

Ashbury Railway Carriage and Iron Company Ltd. Model JMR (RENFE SA-4601)

Ashbury Railway Carriage JMR (RENFE SA-4601) is a luxurious two-axle club car from 1902.

History

During the last decades of the 19th and early 20th centuries, José Martínez Rivas, one of the greatest members of the Biscayan elite (Euskadi), owned a JMR carriage which he used for private travel on the regular railway network. The carriage was registered with the Caminos de Hierro del Norte (Northern Railway Company) as a private carriage.

In 1913, José Martínez Rivas died and his son inherited the carriage. He registered it in his own name until 1935. A year later, with the outbreak of the Civil War, the carriage became part of the “rail ambulance”. It was renumbered SA-4601 and assigned to the Bilbao depot.

In 1977, RENFE donated the car to the future Railway Museum, and in 1984 it was restored in Soria to its original appearance.

Description

The JMR was built on an iron frame, had leaf spring suspension and a wooden body. It was equipped with a spindle brake and automatic vacuum, and had a pipe for steam heating.

The interior layout of this aisle saloon car included a saloon, a sleeping compartment and a toilet in the centre.