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Great Venezuela Railway
The Great Venezuela Railway (''Gran Ferrocarril de Venezuela'') was a railway from Caracas to Valencia. The railway was the longest in Venezuela. It proved difficult to recoup the initial investment and the railway became a notable cause of the Venezuelan crisis of 1902–1903. It fell into disrepair through the early 20th century and the last train ran in 1966. Origin Friedrich Krupp AG contracted with the Venezuelan government in 1888 to build the railway in exchange for £12,800 per kilometer to be repaid at 7 percent interest. Disconto-Gesellschaft financed the project; and terms were renegotiated at £11,000 per kilometer in 1891. The railway was completed in February 1894. Description The railway replaced a difficult carriage road through mountainous terrain. Contemporary accounts expressed great praise for the construction, which used Krupp steel railroad ties. The Caracas terminus was adjacent to the gauge La Guaira and Caracas Railway to the coast, which operat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heritage Railway
A heritage railway or heritage railroad (US usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) in the history of rail transport. Definition The British Office of Rail and Road defines heritage railways as follows:...'lines of local interest', museum railways or tourist railways that have retained or assumed the character and appearance and operating practices of railways of former times. Several lines that operate in isolation provide genuine transport facilities, providing community links. Most lines constitute tourist or educational attractions in their own right. Much of the rolling stock and other equipment used on these systems is original and is of historic value in its own right. Many systems aim to replicate both the look and operating practices of historic former railways companies. Infrastructure Heritage railway line ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gunboat Diplomacy
In international politics, the term gunboat diplomacy refers to the pursuit of foreign policy objectives with the aid of conspicuous displays of naval power, implying or constituting a direct threat of warfare should terms not be agreeable to the superior force. Etymology The term "gunboat diplomacy" comes from the nineteenth-century period of imperialism, when Western powersfrom Europe and the United Stateswould intimidate other, less powerful entities into granting concessions through a demonstration of Western superior military capabilities, usually represented by their naval assets. A coastal country negotiating with a Western power would notice that a warship or fleet of ships had appeared off its coast. The mere sight of such power almost always had a considerable effect, and it was rarely necessary for such boats to use other measures, such as demonstrations of firepower. A notable example of gunboat diplomacy, the Don Pacifico affair in 1850, saw the British Fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cipriano Castro
José Cipriano Castro Ruiz (12 October 1858 – 4 December 1924) was a high-ranking member of the Venezuelan military, politician and the president of Venezuela from 1899 to 1908. He was the first man from the Andes to rule the country, and was the first of four military strongmen from the Andean state of Táchira to rule the country over the next 46 years. Early life Cipriano Castro was the son of José Carmen Castro and Pelagia Ruiz. He was born on 12 October 1858 in Capacho, Táchira. Castro's father was a mid-level farmer and he received an education typical of the tachirense middle-class. His family had significant mercantile and family relations with Colombia, in particular with Cúcuta and Puerto Santander. After studying in his native town and the city of San Cristóbal, he continued his studies at a seminary school in Pamplona, Colombia (1872–1873). He left those studies to return to San Cristóbal, where he began work as employee of a company called Van Dissel, T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Raimundo Andueza Palacio
Raimundo Ignacio Andueza Palacio (6 February 1846 – 17 August 1900), was the president of Venezuela (1890–1892). He also served twice as his country's Minister of Foreign Affairs. A member of the Liberal Party, Andueza entered politics as deputy for Aragua. He was the Minister of Finance from 1877 to 1878. Presidency and the ''revolucion legalistica'' He became president on 7 March 1890, taking up residence in the Yellow House. He left office under duress. His presidential term was due to end in 1892, but he tried to extend it, resulting in resistance known as the ''revolucion legalistica''. He stepped down on 17 June 1892 under pressure from the armed intervention of Joaquín Crespo. Subsequent career Andueza went into exile, not returning until after Crespo's death in 1898. He served as Minister of Foreign Affairs under Cipriano Castro from 1899 to 1900, the year of his death. Personal life He was born in Guanare, Portuguesa state, 6 February 1846, son of ''Raimundo A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stock Car (rail)
In railroad terminology, a stock car or cattle car is a type of rolling stock used for carrying livestock (not carcasses) to market. A traditional stock car resembles a boxcar with louvered instead of solid car sides (and sometimes ends) for the purpose of providing ventilation; stock cars can be single-level for large animals such as cattle or horses, or they can have two or three levels for smaller animals such as sheep, pigs, and poultry. Specialized types of stock cars have been built to haul live fish and shellfish and circus animals such as camels and elephants. Until the 1880s, when the Mather Stock Car Company and others introduced "more humane" stock cars, death rates could be quite high as the animals were hauled over long distances. Improved technology and faster shipping times have greatly reduced deaths. Initial use and development Rail cars have been used to transport livestock since the 1830s. The first shipments in the United States were made via the Baltimor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flatcar
A flatcar (US) (also flat car, or flatbed) is a piece of rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck mounted on a pair of trucks (US) or bogies (UK), one at each end containing four or six wheels. Occasionally, flat cars designed to carry extra heavy or extra large loads are mounted on a pair (or rarely, more) of bogies under each end. The deck of the car can be wood or steel, and the sides of the deck can include pockets for stakes or tie-down points to secure loads. Flatcars designed for carrying machinery have sliding chain assemblies recessed in the deck. Flatcars are used for loads that are too large or cumbersome to load in enclosed cars such as boxcars. They are also often used to transport intermodal containers (shipping containers) or trailers as part of intermodal freight transport shipping. Specialized types Aircraft parts flatcars Aircraft parts were hauled via conventional freight cars beginning in World War II. However, given the ever-increasing size ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Passenger Car (rail)
A passenger railroad car or passenger car ( United States), also called a passenger carriage, passenger coach ( United Kingdom and International Union of Railways), or passenger bogie ( India) is a railroad car that is designed to carry passengers. The term ''passenger car'' can also be associated with a sleeping car, a baggage car, a dining car, railway post office and prisoner transport cars. The first passenger cars were built in the early 1800s with the advent of the first railroads, and were small and little more than converted freight cars. Early passenger cars were constructed from wood; in the 1900s construction shifted to steel and later aluminum for improved strength. Passenger cars have increased greatly in size from their earliest versions, with modern bi-level passenger cars capable of carrying over 100 passengers. Amenities for passengers have also improved over time, with developments such as lighting, heating, and air conditioning added for improved passen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Locomotive
A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, motor coach, railcar or power car; the use of these self-propelled vehicles is increasingly common for passenger trains, but rare for freight (see CargoSprinter). Traditionally, locomotives pulled trains from the front. However, push-pull operation has become common, where the train may have a locomotive (or locomotives) at the front, at the rear, or at each end. Most recently railroads have begun adopting DPU or distributed power. The front may have one or two locomotives followed by a mid-train locomotive that is controlled remotely from the lead unit. __TOC__ Etymology The word ''locomotive'' originates from the Latin 'from a place', ablative of 'place', and the Medieval Latin 'causing motion', and is a shortened form of the term ''locomotive engine'', which was f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Camoruco Railway Station
The Camoruco railway terminus (Spanish: ''Estación Camoruco del Ferrocarril'') in Valencia, Venezuela, is a rare survival of a 19th century railway station in the South America country. The building is also known as the ''Rectorado'' of the University of Carabobo. When the Puerto Cabello and Valencia railway closed in the 1950s, the station was transferred to the University of Carabobo which converted it for administrative use. Location Camoruco is a suburb of Valencia 3 km from the city centre. While the railway line was in operation, there was a tram service from the station to the Plaza Bolivar in the centre. Initially the trams were horse-drawn, but were powered by electricity from some point in the 20th century. Architecture The building respects Spanish Colonial tradition, although the structure was advanced for its time in making use of cast iron imported from England, Traditional materials were also used. File:Interior de casa de Francisco Campuzano Polanco en Coro. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lake Valencia (Venezuela)
Lake Valencia ( es, Lago de Valencia), formerly Lake Tacarigua, is a lake within Carabobo State and Aragua State in northern Venezuela. Geography Lake Valencia is the third largest lake in Venezuela, after Lake Maracaibo and Lake Guri reservoir. The lake is located in one of the Aragua valleys, between the parallel sub- Serranía del Interior in the Cordillera de la Costa Central, of the Venezuelan Coastal Ranges system. The endorheic lake has natural discharge level at 427 m above sea level; the water level declined below this height about 250 years ago. Its surface level currently is 410 m above sea level, and is about 30 km long, has an area of 350 km². The maximum depth is 39 m, the mean depth 18 m. The lake has a number of small islands, with some inhabited. Its drainage basin (watershed area) of 2,646 km². The most important river emptying into the lake is the Aragua River. Others include the El Limón River, Guacara River, Güigüe River, Mariara ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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