The original first station in Haifa, which was built in the Templar style, is no longer operational. The station included a long stone house with marble slabs and stone moldings that housed the Railway administration. Garages were also built nearby. The original building had a clock tower. Part of the building and the clock were destroyed in the Etzel attack on the Mandate-operated railway in 1946.  

The station building was renovated in 2000. It houses a museum spread out on both sides of the track with a connecting bridge; the museum exhibits models of old railroad cars.

Historical photos of Haifa Train Station

 

The Train Station Building today.

After the train left Haifa, it passed over the Kishon Bridge, which is an impressive bridge built of white ashlars. The Kishon River was the first challenge that the engineers faced, and the strength of the bridge today is testimony to their effective solution.  Some of the tracks display the year of construction (1900) and the width of the Turkish track , which is 105 cm.

Kishon bridge

Railway tracks on Kishon Bridge

Tel Hanan, Gesher Factory and Yagur

Tel Hanan Station was the next stop. It was built by Meissner, who took it down during the war; the British rebuilt it. The next stop, Gesher Factory Station, was built by the British in 1925.  Yagur Station, which was 10.2 km from Haifa Station, was built for the residents of Kibbutz Yagur, established in 1922. The station building is a three-room stone structure used today as a warehouse. The next station was El Roi station near the settlement of El Ro’i. El-Ro’i was established in 1935 by immigrants from Kurdistan. Before the station was built in 1945, the residents would just jump on the train when it was going by. The station included a building made of silicate stones and a small platform. By 1998, the station was almost in ruin, but the local residents campaigned for its preservation.

El -Ro’i Station today

 

Kiryat Haroshet and Kfar Yehoshua Stations

Kiryat Haroshet Station was 16.9 km from the Haifa Station. Kiryat Haroshet, established in 1935 was a neighborhood for laborers. The station is built of cast concrete. The site has not been preserved but a model of a steam locomotive is on display.

Kfar Yehoshua (Tel Shamam) Station was one of the Valley Railway’s eight major stations, and the second largest station (Haifa being the largest).   It has 7 buildings built in the German (Templar) style that was popular at the time. The station housed a station manager and his family, the deputy manager, and the station employees, i.e., a small community.  There was also a water tower.  During World War II, the British moved the garages of the Valley Railway to the Kfar Yehoshua Station area.  Kfar Yehoshua was established nearby. For years, the train was the only means of transportation. Today, after the preservation of its main buildings, the station is home to a museum that presents the history of the Valley Railway, and the Kfar Yehoshua Station in particular. It is also the site of many cultural and community events.

 

Kfar Yehoshua Station

Kfar Baruch and Afula Stations

The Kfar Baruch Station was built 26.7 km from Haifa after the establishment of the Kfar Baruch settlement in 1926. Just a wooden shack, it was located about a kilometer north of the settlement,  but nothing remains of it today . For years the train was the only connection to the outside world as there was no road leading to the settlement.

Afula Station, one of the major stations, is located 36.4 km from the starting point of the line. At the beginning of the 20th century, there was only a small village there called el-Fuleh. The railway boosted development in the area, where the Haifa-Beit Shean and Nazareth-Jenin-Jerusalem roads intersected. In 1913-1914, a railroad track was built to Jenin and Nablus. Nearby, Turkish and German army camps and a military airport (Merhavia) were established. After World War I, when Jewish settlement was expanded in the valley, Afula became a regional center. The train station was situated in the town’s main square, near shops and the old bus station. The train station building housed a post office that served the surrounding Jewish settlements. The village of El-Fuleh was purchased by Zionists from the USA (via Yohshua Hankin) in 1922, and in 1925 the foundations were laid for the Jewish settlement of Afula.  During the Night of the Trains operation (also known as  Operation Party) on 1.11.1945, the Afula railway junction  was one of 153 points along the railway system that were hit by the Palmach. Five buildings remain today: a one-story stone building that was used as a cargo warehouse, a stylish two-story stone house whose balcony was the former train platform; a round pumping station with a water pool made of iron on its roof; a small bathroom;  a stone residence in addition to two hundred meters of the train’s platform.  The one-story stone building is today used as a club for soldiers and the stylish two-story stone house is a public library. The houses are owned by the municipality.

Afula Train Station

Kfar Yehezkel, Tel Yosef and Geva Stations

Kfar Yehezkel, known also as Ein Harod Station, is located in a grove at the entrance to Kfar Yehezkel, 45.7 km from Haifa. Built after the establishment of Kfar Yehezkel in 1921, the station includes two buildings that make up the remnants of one of the larger stations on this line. The larger building was built from stone, while the other, built later, is made from silicate stone. The settlement of Ein Harod was first established here but later moved to the area of Tel Yosef.

Kfar Yehezkel Station

The next station on the line is Tel Yosef, about three km. from the previous one.  It consisted of only a small hut. It was built when the Ein Harod and Tel Yosef kibbutzim were moved to higher ground.

Another small station, Geva was established in 1925  next to Kibbutz Geva. It was burnt down in 1938 during the Arab riots of 1936-1939,  and a new station was built from silicate and carved stones, together with a warehouse and a train repair garage.

 

Shata, HaSadeh, and Beit Yosef Stations   

The Shata Station, 51 km from Haifa, is now located inside the Shata prison. When the station was in use, it consisted of a single stone building, with two floors, surrounded by an olive grove. Today, the building is used as the prison’s carpentry workshop.

Hasadeh Station, 57 km from Haifa, has no  building.  It served Kibbutz Hasadeh (today Nir David); it was later renamed Sde Nahum.

Hasadeh Station

The next station, Beit Yosef Station, was 69.8 km from Haifa. It is not clear exactly where the station was, as there are no remains.

Beit Shean Station

Beit Shean Station, situated on the northern side of Beit Shean, was 59.2 km. from Haifa. Beit Shean was established in the 20^th century by the Turks, with the hope that it would expand and boost economy in the area. The residents were given benefits and a train station. However, the town only developed when Jews began to settle the area. The station, which includes six stone buildings, a water tower and a platform, is situated close to Route 90 which connects Tiberias and Jerusalem. After conservation, it will become a regional tourist center.

Historic photo of Beit Shean Station

On its way to the next station, the train crossed the Nahal Issachar bridge. One of the only bridges of this railway that were left intact, it is made of basalt stones with three Ablaq style arches barrel arches that feature black basalt stones and white limestones.

The bridge over Nahal Issachar.

Gesher Nahalim and Naharaim Stations

The next station, Gesher Nehalim (Jasr al-Majma) is 76.5 km from Haifa. After Beit Yosef Station the rails dropped 60 meters and the train crossed Nahal Tabor using a five-arch bridge, the upper part of which is made of white limestone. This is the lowest railway station in the world, 247 meters below sea level. The station was first used by the pioneers of the Menachemiya settlement.  It even had a quarantine pen for animals brought in from Syria. Gesher Nehalim Station was later destroyed by the IDF to prevent it being used by terrorists as a place to hide. This was an important station as it was the last station before the Jordan river, and goods were delivered and sent out from here. 

The bridge over Nahal Tabor

Near Gesher Nahalim three additional bridges can be found: Gasher HaKvish (the Road Bridge);  Gesher Harakevet  (the Train Bridge); and the older Mamluk bridge (the Roman bridge).  These bridges, including the impressive Gesher Nehalim bridge, were blown up on the eve of the invasion of the Arab armies on May 15, 1948.

The next station was Naharaim station, which is located about two kilometers north of the Gesher Nahalim Station. The station was built in 1937 to serve Rotenberg’s electricity plant at the site as well as the Tel Or neighborhood. The station building was built according to International Style. The track continued on a steel bridge over the point where the Jordan and Yarmouk rivers meet. This bridge was also blown up in the War of Independence. This station was not part of the original line, but the track was expanded to include it. This is the only station up until Zemach that is located on the other side of the Jordan River.  

Naharaim Station

Ashdot Ya’akov, Arlozorov and Jordan Valley Stations

Ashdot Ya’akov Station (Delhamia) was 81.7 km from Haifa. It served Kibbutz Ashdot Ya’akov and the Arab village of Delhamia. The station was marked by a signpost only.

The next stop was the Arlozorov Station. After Arlozorov was murdered on June 16, 1933,  the Jewish Agency undertook a settlement project in his memory. With the help of the Arlozorov Foundation, they purchased land and built two Homa and Migdal (Tower and Stockade) settlements: Sha’ar Golan and Masadeh. This is the only station named after a Jewish figure.  

The Jordan Valley Station is next on the line, located 85 from Haifa facing Beit Zera. The station was established as an alternative to the Zemach Station (which was an Arab settlement) to keep Jewish passengers safe during the years of the Arab Revolt.

Zemach Station is 87 km from Haifa. This was an important station that served the settlements of the Jordan Valley and Tiberias. Zemach was a small Bedouin village that flourished as a result of the train station nearby. It was the last station in the Eretz Yisrael before Syria and included customs warehouses, a post office, a British military base, and a local police station. The customs officers and the police checked the passengers and stamped passports before the entrance to Syria.  A pier was built on the Sea of Galilee to serve the ships. For many years this was an import-export point for Arab and Jewish agricultural produce.

This was also the site of a fateful battle between the British and the Germans in World War I. The station was conquered in 1918 by Australian cavalry. Zemach Station extends over 300 meters and includes one building, an elliptical water tower made of basalt stones, and a railway turntable.  The buildings are still preserved.

 The Al-Hama Station, at the entrance to the Hamat Gader baths, was not far from Zemach Station.  

Zemach Station

 

The original first station in Haifa, which was built in the Templar style, is no longer operational. The station included a long stone house with marble slabs and stone moldings that housed the Railway administration. Garages were also built nearby. The original building had a clock tower. Part of the building and the clock were destroyed in the Etzel attack on the Mandate-operated railway in 1946.  

The station building was renovated in 2000. It houses a museum spread out on both sides of the track with a connecting bridge; the museum exhibits models of old railroad cars.

Historical photos of Haifa Train Station

 

The Train Station Building today.

After the train left Haifa, it passed over the Kishon Bridge, which is an impressive bridge built of white ashlars. The Kishon river was the first challenge that the engineers faced, and the strength of the bridge today is testimony to their effective solution.  Some of the tracks display the year of construction (1900) and the width of the Turkish track , which is 105 cm.

Kishon bridge

Railway tracks on Kishon Bridge

Tel Hanan, Gesher Factory and Yagur

Tel Hanan Station was the next stop. It was built by Meissner, who took it down during the war; the British rebuilt it. The next stop, Gesher Factory Station, was built by the British in 1925.  Yagur Station, which was 10.2 km from Haifa Station, was built for the residents of Kibbutz Yagur, established in 1922. The station building is a three-room stone structure used today as a warehouse. The next station was El Roi station near the settlement of El Ro’i. El-Ro’i was established in 1935 by immigrants from Kurdistan. Before the station was built in 1945, the residents would just jump on the train when it was going by. The station included a building made of silicate stones and a small platform. By 1998, the station was almost in ruin, but the local residents campaigned for its preservation.

El -Ro’i Station today

 

Kiryat Haroshet and Kfar Yehoshua Stations

Kiryat Haroshet Station was 16.9 km from the Haifa Station. Kiryat Haroshet, established in 1935 was a neighborhood for laborers. The station is built of cast concrete. The site has not been preserved but a model of a steam locomotive is on display.

Kfar Yehoshua (Tel Shamam) Station was one of the Valley Railway’s eight major stations, and the second largest station (Haifa being the largest).   It has 7 buildings built in the German (Templar) style that was popular at the time. The station housed a station manager and his family, the deputy manager, and the station employees, i.e., a small community.  There was also a water tower.  During World War II, the British moved the garages of the Valley Railway to the Kfar Yehoshua Station area.  Kfar Yehoshua was established nearby. For years, the train was the only means of transportation. Today, after the preservation of its main buildings, the station is home to a museum that presents the history of the Valley Railway, and the Kfar Yehoshua Station in particular. It is also the site of many cultural and community events.

 

Kfar Yehoshua Station

Kfar Baruch and Afula Stations

The Kfar Baruch Station was built 26.7 km from Haifa after the establishment of the Kfar Baruch settlement in 1926. Just a wooden shack, it was located about a kilometer north of the settlement,  but nothing remains of it today. For years the train was the only connection to the outside world as there was no road leading to the settlement.

Afula Station, one of the major stations, is located 36.4 km from the starting point of the line. At the beginning of the 20th century, there was only a small village there called el-Fuleh. The railway boosted development in the area, where the Haifa-Beit Shean and Nazareth-Jenin-Jerusalem roads intersected. In 1913-1914, a railroad track was built to Jenin and Nablus. Nearby, Turkish and German army camps and a military airport (Merhavia) were established.

After World War I, Afula became a regional center when Jewish settlement was expanded in the valley. The train station was situated in the town’s main square, near shops and the old bus station. The train station building housed a post office that served the surrounding Jewish settlements. The village of El-Fuleh was purchased by Zionists from the USA (via Yohshua Hankin) in 1922, and in 1925 the foundations were laid for the Jewish settlement of Afula.  

During the Night of the Trains operation (also known as  Operation Party) on 1.11.1945, the Afula railway junction was one of 153 points along the railway system that were hit by the Palmach. Five buildings remain today: a one-story stone building that was used as a cargo warehouse, a stylish two-story stone house whose balcony was the former train platform; a round pumping station with a water pool made of iron on its roof; a small bathroom;  a stone residence in addition to two hundred meters of the train’s platform.  The one-story stone building is today used as a club for soldiers and the stylish two-story stone house is a public library. The houses are owned by the municipality.

Afula Train Station

Kfar Yehezkel, Tel Yosef and Geva Stations

Kfar Yehezkel, known also as Ein Harod Station, is located in a grove at the entrance to Kfar Yehezkel, 45.7 km from Haifa. Built after the establishment of Kfar Yehezkel in 1921, the station includes two buildings that make up the remnants of one of the larger stations on this line. The larger building was built from stone, while the other, built later, is made from silicate stone. The settlement of Ein Harod was first established here but later moved to the area of Tel Yosef.

Kfar Yehezkel Station

The next station on the line is Tel Yosef, about three km. from the previous one.  It consisted of only a small hut. It was built when the Ein Harod and Tel Yosef kibbutzim were moved to higher ground.

Another small station, Geva was established in 1925  next to Kibbutz Geva. It was burnt down in 1938 during the Arab riots of 1936-1939,  and a new station was built from silicate and carved stones, together with a warehouse and a train repair garage.

 

Shata, HaSadeh, and Beit Yosef Stations   

The Shata Station, 51 km from Haifa, is now located inside the Shata prison. When the station was in use, it consisted of a single stone building, with two floors, surrounded by an olive grove. Today, the building is used as the prison’s carpentry workshop.

Hasadeh Station, 57 km from Haifa, has no building.  It served Kibbutz Hasadeh (today Nir David); it was later renamed Sde Nahum.

Hasadeh Station

The next station, Beit Yosef Station, was 69.8 km from Haifa. It is not clear exactly where the station was, as there are no remains.

Beit Shean Station

Beit Shean Station, situated on the northern side of Beit Shean, was 59.2 km. from Haifa. Beit Shean was established in the 20^th century by the Turks, with the hope that it would expand and boost economy in the area. The residents were given benefits and a train station. However, the town only developed when Jews began to settle the area. The station, which includes six stone buildings, a water tower and a platform, is situated close to Route 90 which connects Tiberias and Jerusalem. After conservation, it will become a regional tourist center.

Historic photo of Beit Shean Station

On its way to the next station, the train crossed the Nahal Issachar bridge. One of the only bridges of this railway that were left intact, it is made of basalt stones with three Ablaq style arches barrel arches that feature black basalt stones and white limestones.

The bridge over Nahal Issachar.

Gesher Nahalim and Naharaim Stations

The next station, Gesher Nehalim (Jasr al-Majma) is 76.5 km from Haifa. After Beit Yosef Station the rails dropped 60 meters and the train crossed Nahal Tabor using a five-arch bridge, the upper part of which is made of white limestone. This is the lowest railway station in the world, 247 meters below sea level. The station was first used by the pioneers of the Menachemiya settlement.  

It even had a quarantine pen for animals brought in from Syria. The IDF later destroyed Gesher Nehalim Station to prevent it from being used by terrorists as a place to hide. This was an important station as it was the last station before the Jordan River, and goods were delivered and sent out from here. 

The bridge over Nahal Tabor

Near Gesher Nahalim three additional bridges can be found: Gasher HaKvish (the Road Bridge);  Gesher Harakevet  (the Train Bridge); and the older Mamluk bridge (the Roman bridge).  These bridges, including the impressive Gesher Nehalim bridge, were blown up on the eve of the invasion of the Arab armies on May 15, 1948.

The next station was Naharaim station, which is located about two kilometers north of the Gesher Nahalim Station. The station was built in 1937 to serve Rotenberg’s electricity plant at the site as well as the Tel Or neighborhood. The station building was built according to International Style. The track continued on a steel bridge over the point where the Jordan and Yarmouk rivers meet. This bridge was also blown up in the War of Independence. This station was not part of the original line, but the track was expanded to include it. This is the only station up until Zemach that is located on the other side of the Jordan River.  

Naharaim Station

Ashdot Ya’akov, Arlozorov and Jordan Valley Stations

Ashdot Ya’akov Station (Delhamia) was 81.7 km from Haifa. It served Kibbutz Ashdot Ya’akov and the Arab village of Delhamia. The station was marked by a signpost only.

The next stop was the Arlozorov Station. After Arlozorov was murdered on June 16, 1933,  the Jewish Agency undertook a settlement project in his memory. With the help of the Arlozorov Foundation, they purchased land and built two Homa and Migdal (Tower and Stockade) settlements: Sha’ar Golan and Masadeh. This is the only station named after a Jewish figure.  

The Jordan Valley Station is next on the line, located 85 from Haifa facing Beit Zera. The station was established as an alternative to the Zemach Station (which was an Arab settlement) to keep Jewish passengers safe during the years of the Arab Revolt.

Zemach Station is 87 km from Haifa. This was an important station that served the settlements of the Jordan Valley and Tiberias. Zemach was a small Bedouin village that flourished as a result of the train station nearby. It was the last station in the Eretz Yisrael before Syria, and included customs warehouses, a post office, a British military base and a local police station. The customs officers and the police checked the passengers and stamped passports before the entrance to Syria.  A pier was built on the Sea of Galilee to serve the ships. For many years this was an import-export point for Arab and Jewish agricultural produce.

This was also the site of a fateful battle between the British and the Germans in World War I. The station was conquered in 1918 by Australian cavalry. Zemach Station extends over 300 meters and includes one building, an elliptical water tower made of basalt stones, and a railway turntable.  The buildings are still preserved.

 The Al-Hama Station, at the entrance to the Hamat Gader baths, was not far from Zemach Station.  

read more about the Valley Train here: https://eng.shemerisrael.co.il/jezreel-valley-railway-valley-railway/