Most lines shown were built by the French over a 20 year period early in the 20th century, the exception being the isolated line inland from Manakara constructed in the 1930s. Work started on construction of the line north from Moramanga, that was intended to reach Lac Aloutra, in 1915 and it reached Ambatondrazaka in 1923. In spite of subsequent sporadic attempts at extension, it never reached the planned terminus.
The images below are of a series of postcards from Chris Walker`s collection and photos by Jeremy Wiseman. The first postcards are of the 60cm gauge Diégo-Suarez military line on the north of the island.

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