Malaya Tselinnaya children’s railway

This snapshot was made at the times when Nur-Sultan was known as Akmolinsk. 1953. The photograph features quite unusual railway – the first children’s railway in Kazakhstan. Its construction was planned in 1930-s, but the war came and put those plans on hold. However, after the Victory, project was resumed again. Back then, the rail industry was in desperate need of qualified specialists. Thus, the leadership of Karaganda Railways, which at that time included Akmolinsk junction, decided to teach young Kazakhs railway professions. In 1946, the narrow-gauge railway was built on the left bank of the Ishim River. It was named after a Soviet officer, USSR hero Mikhail Yaglinsky.