Historical Studies

Historical Studies

The reflection of workers’ and Mazandaran people’s concerns and complaints during the construction of the northern railway line

Document Type : Research Paper

Author
Roqaye Javadi
Assistant Professor, Department of History, Yasouj University, Yasouj , Iran
10.30465/hcs.2025.50728.3004
Abstract
Abstract
The modernization process during Reza Shah's era yield to fundamental changes in the political, economic, social, and cultural systems of society. The expansion of communication routes and the construction of the trans-Iranian railway were some of the issues that drew Reza Shah’s attention during the modernization process.The construction of the northern railway was accompanied by numerous challenges and difficulties that engaged the workforce and the residents of the areas through which the railway passed. Through documentary and library studies and using a descriptive-analytical method, this study seeks to reflect the workers’ concerns and complaints and the consequent suffering, as well as the problems inhabitants encountered in their dealing with foreign companies involved in the construction of the railway, as one of the modernization processes during the Reza Shah era in the cities of Mazandaran.The findings indicate that healthcare, compensation payment methods, the employment of European rather than Iranian labors, financial disputes with Kampsax company, and the loss of farmlands and rice field were some of the most significant concerns and worries of the workforce and local population along the northern railway. Further investigations reveal that these issues, although present, were not as severe as stated in some documents. In response to numerous issues which caused workers’ and the public’s dissatisfaction, the government and the company introduced some measures; however, in many cases, workers had complaints that were followed up by the Ministry of Roads, Parliament, and the Ministries of Justice and Finance.
Keywords: Renovation, Railway, Complaint, Workers, North, Reza Shah.
Introduction
Having an organized transportation system, and especially the construction of railways, has been a long-cherished aspiration of the Iranian government and people. The accomplishment of this important undertaking, which began during the Qajar era, was accompanied by difficulties; however, with the rise of the Pahlavi government, the issue of roads development, including the railway construction, was seriously considered. The construction of the Iranian National Railway began in 1926 and was completed in 1939. Although the railway construction project was completed, it brought about significant changes in the lives of not only the public adjacent to the railway, but also the workers involved in the project. Thus, what has been covered in this study is a look at the process of building the trans-Iranian railway, especially the northern railway line, to shed light on the problems, concerns, and complaints of workers and local residents in the northern regions, based on Mazandaran documents, representing the workers’ and local people’s complaints and petitions during the 6th to 12th sessions of the National Assembly.
Materials & Methods
The researcher gathered research data employing a historical approach and relying on the analysis of documents and library resources. Subsequently, the collected data was analyzed using a descriptive-analytical approach. As a final step, the data was subjected to a thorough explanation and interpretation.
Discussion and Results
During the Pahlavi era, the bill for the construction of the north-south railway was approved by parliament in February 1926. Then, to carry out this task, foreign engineers came to Iran and railroad construction operations were initiated. Teams equipped with technical tools were deployed to the northern and southern regions to carry out mapping and preliminary studies for determining the optimal railway route. The announcement regarding the construction of the Iranian was gradually spread in foreign countries, stimulating interest from foreign companies and investors keen to participate in the railway construction. Most of these companies and investors sent representatives to Tehran. First, the government entrusted the railway construction project to a syndicate of German and American companies, which completed a portion of the line. However, when the first contract was terminated, the Kampsax company assumed the responsibility for completing the line. In the northern section, the railway mapping studies, which began in 1928 by a syndicate of German and American companies, encountered many obstacles and challenges. The project was finally completed by the Kampsax Company and launched in June 1937. The launch of the railway construction process in the north was accompanied by numerous outcomes; not only it led to changes in the region’s ecosystem but also it gave rise great concerns, anxieties, and suffering among the local residents and involved workers.The arose problems in the modernization process of Mazandaran and its direct outcomes, especially those related to the construction of the railway, concerned the health and medical care, damages, efforts to pay compensation, financial disputes with the Kampsax company regarding wage payments, as well as the superiority of European workforce over Iranian one.
The investigation of the documents reveals that the complaints of some residents and workers were referred to the Speaker of Parliament. This indicates either a lack of response to those complaints or some dissatisfactions with the verdict issued in the lower courts and the referral of those complaints to a higher court. The examination of these complaints yields significant insights about the damages inflicted upon the people during the modernization process.
Conclusion
The construction of Iranian railway, connecting the north of the country to its south, entailed numerous consequences and damages for both the locals, where the line passed, and the workers, who were employed in the project. One of the most significant consequences of the construction of the railway in Mazandaran was the inadequacy of health and medical facilities to treat the workforce and manage the deaths of injured workers in the early years of the railway construction. These problems were, then, addressed by the government and the Compax company. Other issues faced by the workforce on the railway were the non-payment of compensations and some financial disputes between workers and, the supervisors and the Compax company. Moreover, the replacement of Iranian labor with European labor by the companies was another significant issue, given the greater expertise of European labor compared to that of Iranian labor in railway technical matters.A further consequence was the destruction of forests justified by fulfilling the need for timbers to build tunnels for a coal mine that supplied the necessary fuel for the railroad’s construction, beside the loss of rice fields and farmlands that people needed for their subsistence. Considering the concerns and the harms experienced by workers and residents in the northern region, it seems that although these issues existed, they were not as severe as stated in some documents.As mentioned earlier, regarding many of the consequences that yield workers’ and the public’s dissatisfaction, including health care and compensation, the government and the company introduced some measures. For the remaining damages, the issues and concerns of the workers were followed up by the Ministry of Roads, the Parliament, and the Ministry of Justice and Finance.
Keywords
Renovation
Railway
Complaint
Workers
North
Reza Shah
Subjects
Documents
National Library and Archives Organization of Iran (SACMA):
Investigating the accusations against Mīān Kolā railway officials regarding bribe and wage discrepancies among workers, 240/ 79672,  Digital Library of the National Library and Archives Organization of Iran. [in Persian]
Railways in Iran, documents on the construction of the national railway (2021). Tehran: National Archives and Library Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran. [in Persian]
Taxation of railway workers' wages and Investigating the problems created in this regard, 240/ 15036, Digital Library of the National Library and Archives Organization of Iran. [in Persian]
Documents (extracted from Bahārestān documents (4) titled Māzandarān documents during the Reza Shah era, Sixth to Twelfth National Consultative Assembly): 
Document No. 85/1, Mohammad Zamān Zamāni's request for the delivery of the Zīrāb mine to him, 1933, N.2654,p. 216. [in Persian]
Document No.85/2, Protest to the seizure of Zīrāb mine by Khāleghi Sāravi, 1933, N.621,p.217. [in Persian]
Document No. 85/3, Mohammad Zamān Zamāni's objection to the non-transfer of the Zīrāb mine to him, 1934, N . 3164,p. 218. [in Persian]
Document No. 85/4, Ministry of Finance's response to Mohammad Zamān Zamāni's letter, 1934, N. 2401,p.219. [in Persian]
Document No.86/1, objection of small landowners of Kanīj Kolā Zīrāb regarding the ground rent of the coal mine and tree felling, 1933, N .2014,p. 220. [in Persian]
Document No.86/2, complaint of the subjects of Kanīj Kolā regarding non-payment of ground rent, 1934, No. 7048,pp. 221-222. [in Persian]
Document No.93, request for the realization of rights from the Chalūs Road contractor, 1941, pp. 231-232.  [in Persian]
Document No.109/1, Protest of the peasants of Zīrāb against the change in the railway map, 1932, N.5220, p.260. [in Persian]
Document No.109/2, Ministry of Roads' response to the complaint of the subjects of Zīrāb, 1932, N.639/3533, p. 261. [in Persian]
Document No. 110/1, Request of Abbās-Qólī Atapoūr for the establishment of accident benefits or suitable employment, 1932, N.7520, p.262. [in Persian]
Document No. 111, complaint about the disorganization of railway hospitals, 1933, N 1416, pp. 263-264. [in Persian]
Document No. 112, complaint of Zīrāb residents about non-payment of tree prices by contractors, 1933, N.2167, p265. [in Persian]
Document No. 113/1, Móhīt Dāmghāni's complaint about non-payment of fees, 1933, No. 3032, pp. 265-267. [in Persian]
Document No. 113/2, Ministry of Roads and Communications' response regarding the complaint of, Móhīt Dāmghāni, 1934, No 1747, pp. 267. [in Persian]
Document No. 114, Complaint regarding the non-employment of Iranians by the Campsax Company, 1933, N 3035, pp. 268-270. [in Persian]
Document No. 115, claim for compensation by a railway worker due to an accident, 1934, N6360, pp. 270-271. [in Persian]
Document No. 116, Complaint of the Railway Manager Regarding His dismissal by Kampsax, 1933, N 6394, pp. 271-273. [in Persian]
Document No. 117, claim of a railway worker for compensation for the accident of losing his legs, 1335, N 7471, pp. 273-274. [in Persian]
Document No. 118, claim of Dāmghāni workers for payment of railway construction wages, 1935, N7863, pp. 274-275. [in Persian]
Document No. 119, claim of the Aghābagiān Brothers for investigation the Injustices of the Lavī Company, 1935, N1123, pp. 276-278. [in Persian]
Document No. 120, request for establishing a pension for one of the casualties of railway construction, 1936, N6724, p278. [in Persian]
Document No. 121, Mohammad-Hassan Sangtarāsh's claim for collection of his debt from Kampsax, 1938, N4111, pp. 279-280. [in Persian]
Newspapers and Journals: 
Ettela'at: [in Persian]
Ettela'at, No. 160,24th  February 1927.
Ettela'at, No. 620, 3 th November 1928, p. 2.
Ettela'at, No. 698,  7th  February 1928, p.3. 
Iran's National Railway, 1927-1938, on the occasion of the completion of the construction of Iran's National Railway. Ministry of Roads Publication, 5th August1938. [in Persian]
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Historical Studies
Volume 17, Issue 2 - Serial Number 34
Autumn and Winter 2026-2027
October 2026
Pages 57-92

  • Receive Date 17 December 2024
  • Revise Date 26 August 2025
  • Accept Date 04 November 2025