706 Ry. Grand Div. Eng. Dept. Railways of Germany

Leveraging German infrastructure during the invasion of ‘Fortress Europe.’

During World War II, the Military Rail Services (MRS) was organized under the authority of the U.S. Army to oversee the operation of railroads across various theaters of conflict for purposes of troop transportation and resupply. The MRS created various operating groups known as Grand Divisions, modeled after private railroads and often sponsored by them as well.

One such example was the 706th Railway Grand Division, supported by the Pennsylvania Railroad to the point where its personnel were recruited directly from company employees. This map covering most of Germany and parts of France and the Netherlands highlights the operational authority of the 706th Railway Grand Division in late 1944 or early 1945. Railway lines of varying importance are noted according to a legend in the lower right, with numerical values referencing an additional index or publication that is no longer present. Manuscript annotations in the lower left highlight two routes in red.

Published in Germany by the 652nd Engineer Topographic Battalion. More information about the 706 Railway Grand Division can be found in the Winter 2004 issue of West Jersey Rails Quarterly, available here.