Era I: The German state railways (1835–1920)

Era I covers the time from the first German railway in 1835 to the founding of the Deutsche Reichsbahn in 1920. It is the most colorful period of railroad history: each German state – Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony, Württemberg, Baden and others – ran its own railway with its own locomotives, colors, coats of arms and numbers.

The sub-periods of Era I

Sub-period	Years	What characterizes this period
Ia	1835–1875	The first lines are built, mostly by private companies. The locomotives are small and often imported from England; cars have two or three axles and open platforms.
Ib	1875–1895	The states buy up the private railways and build their own state railways. Domestic locomotive works supply more powerful engines, and the lines are joined into networks.
Ic	1895–1910	Express trains with bogie cars, corridor cars with gangway bellows, the first superheated steam locomotives. The Prussian state railway becomes one of the largest companies in the world.
Id	1910–1920	The heyday of the state railway steam locomotive, for example the Bavarian S 3/6 and the Prussian P 8. During the First World War locomotives are used across state borders; afterwards many go abroad as reparations.

Typical on the model: the name or abbreviation of the state railway on the vehicle, numbers or names instead of classes, lots of brass and colorful cars (green, brown, yellow, depending on the class). Prussian locomotives are mostly dark green with black parts and red running gear.

Well-known locomotives and trains of Era I

“Adler” (1835): the first locomotive of the Ludwig Railway Nuremberg–Fürth, delivered from England. Märklin already had it in the 1936 catalog as a 0 gauge model – Märklin AR12930 in the archive.
Bavarian S 3/6 (from 1908): an elegant express locomotive with large wheels, nicknamed “Hochhaxige” (the long-legged one) – Märklin 39436 in the archive.
Prussian P 8 (from 1906): with about 3,800 built, one of the most numerous passenger locomotives ever; it ran on the DB until 1974.
Prussian T 18 (from 1912): tank locomotive for suburban trains, later DR class 78 – Märklin 3109 in the archive.
Württemberg T 5 (from 1910): tank locomotive for branch lines – Märklin 3312 in the archive.
Bavarian “Glaskasten” (from 1905): a small local railway locomotive with a glazed cab (“glass box”) – Märklin 36861 in the archive.