The city of Malatya suffered economically during the time of the First World War and the War of Independence even though it was not invaded. Its economy did not improve until after 1931 when the railroad came to the town.
The railroad arrived in Malatya in 1931. The Malatya railway station building, which reflects architecture typical of the early years of the Republic, went into service in 1934. After Turkey gained its independence, the country had a goal of creating a self-sufficient national economy that would be structured according to national interests. Railroads were to be an important vehicle for utilizing national resources. The Malatya railroad was one segment that was structured in keeping with this goal. In a speech he gave at a session of the Turkish Grand National Parliament on 1 March 1922, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk said, “The life and vigor of economic life are proportional to the level and the conditions of transportation vehicles, roads, railroads and ports.” At about the same time, Atatürk also said to the newspapers, “All cities in the country will soon be connected to others by railroads. Significant mineral resources will be accessible. People everywhere will rejoice when they see the building blocks of our goal, which is to transform devastated land into prosperous settlements throughout the whole country.”
Transportation extends from the west into Anatolia
As the nation’s capital moved from Istanbul in the west to Ankara in central Anatolia, transportation also extended from the west into central Anatolia and to eastern and southeastern Anatolia. From 1927 to1939, the cities of Kayseri, Sivas, Malatya, Niğde, Elazığ, Diyarbakır and Erzurum were connected to the railway network. From 1935 to 1945, it became more important to build connecting lines.
In addition to the existing network of railways, the following loops were added in 1935: Manisa- Balıkesir-Kütahya-Afyon and Eskisehir-Ankara-Kayseri-Kardeşgediği-Afyon; İzmir-Denizli-Karakuyu-Afyon-Manisa and Kayseri-Kardeşgediği-Adana-Narlı-Malatya-Çetinkaya. These loops consisted of connecting lines, and their purpose was to shorten physical and economic distance. For example, the Çetinkaya-Malatya connecting line shortened the distance between Ankara and Diyarbakır from 1,324 kilometers to 1,116 kilometers, resulting in a reduction of 208 kilometers. These connections meant that instead of the tree-shaped branches created in the 19th century by a colonial economy, the railway lines were transformed into a “network with loops”, as was duly required by a national economy.
Station building being discussed as part of an urban landscaping plan
In a ruling signed in January, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism’s Sivas Regional Council for the Protection of Cultural and Natural Resources provided protection for the Turkish Railway 5th Region station building and administrative building by certifying them as class two buildings. Work is currently being done in Malatya to design urban landscaping that will be beneficial for the next 20 to 30 years. This includes moving all of the facilities on the 35 hectare property, except for the station building, to a location outside the city. Work is also being done to include Malatya in the country’s high-speed train project. The Malatya Railway Station is currently handling a heavy load of cargo traffic, even though some trains have been cancelled or re-routed due to a landslide that occurred in January between the Kumlu and Kapıdere stations on the Malatya-Narlı line. The Lake Van Express and Southern Express trains carry passengers 5 days a week, and the Euphrates Express functions as a regional passenger train between Elazığ and Malatya. The Malatya Railway Station handles an average of 2,500 passengers per month. As for cargo shipments, 8,000 tons of goods are transported daily on 10 trains that operate regularly between Malatya and Çetinkaya, 2,500 tons are transported on 4 trains that operate between Malatya and Elazığ, and 2,250 tons of cargo is transported on 3 trains per day between Malatya and Diyarbakır. Before the Malatya Narlı line was shut down due to the landslide, it was handling 15,000 tons of iron and chrome ore per day. These shipments are temporarily being routed through Kayseri.
Atatürk came to Malatya twice
After the Turkish Republic was declared, Atatürk came to Malatya on his second national tour to perform the opening ceremony for the Fevzipaşa-Malatya line as part of the nation’s investment in the railway, which was very significant for national development. After he arrived in Mersin by ferry on 12 February 1931, he travelled to Malatya via the Fevzipaşa-Malatya railway. The next |
railway station platform
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day, he was greeted by an enthusiastic crowd at the Malatya Railway Station. With him were Tevfik Bıyıklıoğlu, Şükrü Kaya, Recep Peker, Afet İnan and Hasan Ali Yücel. After Atatürk disembarked from the train, he sent the following telegraph to Prime Minister Ismet InönüTo the honorable Prime Minister General Ismet: I arrived in Malatya today on the newly constructed railway. Sir, I would like to offer my congratulations and appreciation to you once more for the very felicitous construction activities that you have been overseeing.Malatya - 13 February 1931
President Gazi Mustafa Kemal
Atatürk spent that night in Malatya and departed for Adana on 14 February 1931 with his private train.
Atatürk went to Malatya a second time via Sivas on 12 November 1937 to lay the foundation for the Diyarbakır-Iran-Iraq railway line. Turkey’s first president was greeted with a 21-gun salute upon his arrival together with prime minister Celal Bayar, a number of ministers, parliamentarians and his adopted daughter, Sabiha Gökçen. After he inspected the work being done for Malatya’s industrial development, he departed the city.
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Atatürk's welcoming in Malatya on November 14, 1937
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Sources:
• www.malatya.gov.tr, resource researcher Yazar Celal Yalvac
• www.malatyaguncel.com
• www.malatyabirlikgazetesi.com
• www.malatyahaber.com
• Trenler Anılardan Gecer, Aykut Tankuter-Pınar Yaman, Novartis Kültür Yay., İst., 2004
• www.Turkcebilgi.com
We would like to thank the TCDD Directorate of the Press and Public Relations and Necmi Yiğit, Director of the Malatya Railway Station, for their support with photographs and archived information.
