Russian Railroad Maps 1877-1912

This is a collection of German language Russian railroad maps between 1877 and 1912. This covers the period when there was mass German emigration from Russia to North America and South America. Those who are curious about how their ancestors made their way to ports in the west (Antwerp, Bremen, Hamburg, Libau, etc.) can use the map closest to the time period when your ancestor left Russia and trace the path back. 

The first railroads in Russia began running in 1838. Each tsar had a different impact on the expansion of railroads through the empire, the result of which you can see with increased private and freight railroads over time on the maps below. Some of the German colonies were on or near a railway, while a few had railway stops.  

Timeline of Railroads in Russia

1835    Tsar Nicholas I (26 December 1825 – 2 March 1855) approved construction of the first railroad in Russia. Through the reign of Nicholas I, railroads were built and administered by the State. 
1838    The first railroad between St. Petersburg and Zarskoye Selo began operating.
1851    The railroad segment between Moscow and St. Petersburg opened; Moscow became the central hub of the Russian railroad network.
1855    Through the reign of Alexander II (2 March 1855 – 13 March 1881), railroads were built and administered by private companies. Existing railroads were also administered by private companies.
1871    Railroad connections from Kiev to Moscow and Odessa were in place.
1874    The Moscow-Charkov-Simferopol railroad segment was completed.
1881    Through the reign of Alexander III (13 March 1881 – 1 November 1894), there was a return to the idea of ​​State railways and a large number of private companies were nationalized.
1891    Construction began on the Trans-Siberian Railroad.
1894    Through the reign of Nicholas II (1 November 1894 – 15 March 1917), there was a continuation of what Alexander III put in place with state railways, nationalization, and so forth. 
1896    In the Russian-Chinese mutual assistance pact, China receives a concession from Russia for the construction of the East China Railroad.
1898    Russia leased from China the Liaodong Peninsula, together with the port of Port Arthur (Lüshen), with the concession to connect it with the Eastern Railroad.
1904    The construction of the Trans-Siberian Railroad was completed.

1877

Title: “Eisenbahn Karte des Europäischen Russland” (Railroad Map of European Russia)
Date: 1877
Source: St. Petersburger Kalender für das Jahr 1877
Notes:  This was published as a supplement to the St. Petersburger Kalender (Beilage zum St. Petersburger Kalender). While previous editions of the St. Petersburger Kalendar had lists of Russian railroad lines in them, this was the first edition I located that included an actual map. It is the oldest map in this collection. The legend notes completed railroads, railroads under construction, confirmed railroads, and planned railroad lines. 

1892

Title: “Neueste Eisenbahn Karte des Europäischen Russland” (Latest Railroad Map of European Russia)
Date: 1892
Source: St. Petersburger Kalender für das Jahr 1892
Notes:  This map has two smaller maps that show railroad lines through some of Central Asia and Far East Russia bordering China and the Sea of Japan. 

1909

Title: “Eisenbahn Karte des Europäischen Russland” (Railroad Map of European Russia)
Date: 1909
Source: Neuer Haus- und Landwirtschaftskalender für deutsche Ansiedler im südlichen Russland Jahr 1909 
Notes:  This was published as a supplement to the Neuen Haus- und Land-Wirtschafts Kalender (Beilage zum Neuen Haus- und Land-Wirtschafts Kalender). This map is accompanied by a list of fares that can be viewed here. 

1912

Title: “Die russichen Eisenbahn” (The Russian Railway)
Date: 1912
Source: American Geographical Society Library, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee Libraries
Notes:  A very detailed map showing every stop on each railroad line. It shows state run railroad lines, private rail lines, and freight lines. It also includes several detailed maps of cities and regions. 

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Related Posts and Sources:

1. A history of Russian railways gives a good overview of events for railroad history buffs. Website is in German. Use a browser with translation capabilities or DeepL to translate.
2. American Geographical Society Library, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee Libraries
3. Farewell Forever Kleinliebental (posted 15 October 2023)
4. German-Russian Handbook (free ebook courtesy of the Germans from Russia Heritage Collection) notes in its timeline the growth of railroads in Russia.
5. Mapping German Migrations to Siberia (posted 5 March 2025)
6. Maps of Railways and Waterways of the USSR 1943. Very detailed, good quality images, all in Russian. Very good source for mapping deportations during WWII.
7. Maps: Russian Railroads (1867-1950) (created 8 November 2019)
8. Neuer Haus- und Landwirtschaftskalender für deutsche Ansiedler im südlichen Russland Jahr 1909 
9.  St. Petersburger Kalender für das Jahr 1877
10. St. Petersburger Kalender für das Jahr 1892

Last updated 12 March 2025

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Lustdorf, Liebental enclave, Kherson province

Two views of the main street in Lustdorf, circa 1910. The top shows the church on the right. 

Lustdorf (also known as Kaiserscheim, Olgino and Khernomorka) was a Lutheran Mother colony in the Liebental district or enclave of Russia near the Black Sea. Among the earliest colonies in the Black Sea area, it was founded in 1804 or 1805 southwest of the city of Odessa. The closest German colony to it was Kleinliebental just 3.5 miles (5.7 kilometers) to the west. 

Lustdorf on an 1855 map of Lutheran settlements in Russia. 

Lustdorf on a 1910 map of the 3rd Military Survey of Austria-Hungary.

It became populated with skilled craftsmen who worked in Odessa, so less land was allotted to the colony for agriculture. In 1859, there were 45 houses in Lustdorf. The church was built in 1869/70. The congregation paid 39,832 rubles for it. It had 300 seats and a Walker organ with 11 stops.  

There are a number family trees with Lustdorfers and parish records have been translated and indexed by Black Sea German Research: 

• born in Lustdorf
• died in Lustdorf
• translated parish record indexes (births, marriages, deaths)

The Lutheran church in Lustdorf, circa 1910. 

By the late 1800s, Lustdorf had developed into a sea-side resort, spa and sanatorium, and soon, a tram from the great fountain in Odessa to Lustdorf brought Russian visitors directly to the colony for rest, relaxation, and rejuvenation.

Lustdorf was incorporated into the city of Odessa after 1945. Today it’s a neighborhood in the city named Chornomorka. The name Lustdorf hasn’t entirely been lost to history. There is still a tram stop named “Lystdorf Settlement.”

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My personal connection to Lustdorf is my 4x great-grandfather, Johann Martin Schilling. He was my first ancestor to arrive in Russia. The month of March marked both a beginning and an ending for Martin. In March 1809, Martin and his family travelled from Steinsfurt near Sinsheim in Baden to Frankfurt am Main. There they stayed between 23 March to 4 April waiting to begin their journey to Russia. They arrived in Glückstal in July 1809. He was 42 years old. On 3 March 1848, Martin Schilling died in Lustdorf where he was living with one of his younger sons. He was 81 years old and had lived in Russia nearly half of his very long life. 

I imagine Martin as an old man by the sea looking out over the water. He stands tall with still mostly dark hair that he rakes back with his fingers as the wind gusts. He rubs his tired blue eyes and remembers where he came from, how far he has come, and he reassures himself, “I did the best I could.” I have heard these words from his descendants time and again; I hear his baritone voice supporting theirs, a major chord across time. We all do the best we can. No man can ever judge if it was enough.

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Sources and Further Reading:

1. Atlas der Evangelisch - Lutherischen Gemeinen in Russland from the David Rumsey Historical Map Collection.
2. Black Sea German Research: database births, deaths, translated BMD parish record indexes
3. Martens, Ulrich. 2010. German-Russian Handbook. (free ebook courtesy of the Germans from Russia Heritage Collection)
4. Mishin, Mikhail. “The First Odessa Tram Was Born in Lustdorf.” Heritage Review 49, no. 3 (2019): 6–12.
5. Odessa Photo Gallery 
6. Schnurr, Joseph. 1978. Die Kirchen und das religiöse Leben der Rußlanddeutschen.
7. Third Military Mapping Survey of Austria-Hungary, section 48-46 from Vlasenko's Topographic Map of Ukraine, Russia, Belarus.

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Last updated 16 March 2025