Borovnica has always been known for its hospitality and strong national consciousness. A Reading Society was founded in 1874 and became a driving force of cultural and social life. On important anniversaries and other national holidays, people from near and far liked to come to the small village under the mighty Viaduct. Janez Borštnik, president of the Society, put a significant stamp to the movement.

A new school building was opened in Borovnica two years later (1876). Until then, young people were not mandatorily involved in education, lessons were given by priests or organists as part of religious instructions. It was pastor Janez Skubic who in 1848 initiated the establishment of a school. Lessons took place in the sexton’s house (today’s library). Fran Papler was appointed a teacher, and with his knowledge and actions, he significantly influenced national awareness, educational and cultural life in the town, and he was also actively involved in fruit growing.

In addition to social development, the railway also triggered rapid economic progress. The place changed its image. Large borough houses were built, shops and inns appeared, and a water supply network began to develop. The woodworking industry developed and became a driving force of the economy. Furniture factories emerged in addition to large sawmills. The most important were Kobi’s, Majaron’s, Petrič’s and Švigelj’s sawmills. The Southern Railway construction additionally accelerated already well-developed sawmilling in Borovnica as well as the exploitation of forests and the sales of wood to Trieste and elsewhere. The population structure was also slowly changing. Borovnica inhabitants got jobs in the railway and sawmills, some commuted to work elsewhere. The number of craftsmen increased. In 1868, the Great Assembly of the Agricultural Company proposed to establish a company branch also for Borovnica.

In spite of rapid development, however, a record had crept in the column of Potopisne črtice (Travel Journal Novelettes) published by Kmetijske in rokodelske novice, in their 49^th issue, December 1894, which later proved to be very true: “Potopisne črte. From Ljubljana to Ljubljana / Authors: Jos. Levičnik. The next station, Borovnica, is famous for its giant bridge, which runs the railway very high above the valley with the same name right in front of the village. There are actually two bridges on top of each other at a height of about 20 fathoms. I described all of these: the bridge and the station, and the construction of the railway over the Ljubljana Moors, in the Society of St. Mohor’s 1874 calendar, pages 191 to 196, in a very accurate and thorough manner; therefore, I find reiteration of all these unnecessary here. Nevertheless, I am still mentioning one more today. Though many a man may shake their heads in scepticism when reading my thoughts, but I say them anyway, namely: our descendants may still experience the railway over the swamps and the Borovnica Viaduct being – a giant monumental ruin. Many of us seniors still remember how many doubts were raised about the construction of the railway across the Ljubljana Moors, and there was a lot of talk about the fact that its realisation should have been mostly attributed to the stubborn will of the then Minister of Trade, Bruck.”

Railway Guardhouse No. 666

Railway guard house belong to typical and most widespread railway buildings of their times. Guards used to live and work in them, and their basic task was to ensure safe traffic. In the time without telephones, telegraphs, and technically undeveloped signalling, traffic could only be relatively safe with the help of guards. Their tasks include constant monitoring the line in both directions and handling signals, raising and lowering railway gates at passenger crossings, observing passing trains and all railway installations, and taking appropriate action in case of irregularities. Guards also transmitted messages, and thereby quite successfully replaced the later telegraph. With a purpose of successful guard service implementation, guardhouses had to be placed very densely, even at less than 500 m, provided that they could be seen from one to another. They differ in size and shape. Their size was probably determined by the type and amount of work for a particular job, and their architecture was tailored to local requirements.

In the area of Borovnica, there are three types of guardhouses of different sizes. A smallest guardhouse with one room, middle with three connected rooms, and a large one with four rooms. The large guardhouse in Borovnica was preserved for a long time; however, with a new owner, it changed its appearance considerably. All of guardhouses are characteristic by an observatory, a kind of small, track-facing room with three windows, which allowed the guard to observe all sides. At the very beginning, guardhouses were mostly dwellings for guards and their families, and a workplace. Later, with the development of signalling, security and telecommunication devices, guardhouses lost their function and were only used as dwellings. Where the job was still needed, a wooden service hut was set up next to the guardhouse. Guardhouses were built in standard forms and technique along the entire line from Vienna to Trieste. This was also the direction of their numbering order.

Guardhouse No. 666 was upgraded and put into service in 1857. It is located at the old track, and it is the last one before the Viaduct. It is the standard smallest guardhouse leaning against the hillside. It is special for being located on the upper side of the track and is a mirror-image of guardhouses of the same type. It was built according to the first known variant, namely of brick and stone. Both rooms are vaulted. The roof had been changed over time, but with the renovation in 2006, its original shape was restored.

In 1901, this guardhouse was abandoned due to its discomfort and small size, and a new one, significantly larger and more comfortable, was built in the immediate vicinity. The new guardhouse was given the number 666, and the old one was numbered 666a. Since then, the small guardhouse has had the role of an auxiliary facility. After the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the guardhouse got another number – 411. After the Second World War, most of the guardhouses on the Southern Railway were abandoned or thoroughly remodelled and expanded. Most of the abandoned guardhouses have collapsed long ago; therefore, it is almost impossible to find one. The guardhouse No. 666 is one of the few, if not the only such a guardhouse in our country, which has remained almost unchanged until now, in all its architectural appearance. (Tadej Brate)

In the autumn of 2006, at the initiative of Mr Bogomir Troha, Zgodovinsko društvo Borovnica (Borovnica Historical Society) started renovating the guardhouse building. The renovation was taken over by the local company Anto Milardović, s. p., and a lot of work was carried out by members of the Society. A large amount of funds was provided by the Municipality of Borovnica, and some funds came from other donors. The renovated guardhouse was opened at the 150^th anniversary of the Southern Railway, in July 2007.

Signalling and communication devices were developing simultaneously with the railway infrastructure. In 1939, an article in Jutro newspaper briefly described how the signalling was carried out during the first years of traffic in the Vienna–Trieste line: “When I visited Ljubljana for the first time, a single telegraph wire was laid along the main road from Vienna to Trieste. It was laid in Nunska ulica. Later on, there were already two wires, and three lines in 1857. This year, the wires were laid along the railway line, and only one wire was left along the main road to Idrija. Guards used to live along the railroad so close to each other that they were able to see each other. Instead of a telegram, each guard had five round, large, red-painted baskets on high poles. When the Ljubljana–Trieste train arrived, each guard pulled up two baskets. For the train from Trieste, three baskets had to be pulled up. There were no other signals. Guards kept giving signals from one guardhouse to another until the report reached a certain place. At night, they had lamps for signals instead of baskets. And in the fog, every guard blew a horn. When an engine driver did not see whether they received the signs, they quickly stopped and went to the guardhouse to see, whether the guard might have fallen asleep forever. This has happened several times. No wonder. A railway guard had to work continuously for two days and two nights, and only on the third day they got a replacement for one day and one night …”

Baskets were replaced by modern signals, and horn-blowing by telephones. Today, the Ljubljana–Trieste line is and automated line, supported by a modern computer infrastructure. In modern trains, passengers can use the internet.