Author: Bohuslav Královič
Bohuslav Královič was born in 1950 in Križovany nad Dudváhom. He died in 2018 before he was able to finish this publication. He was married, and with his wife Anna they had two daughters Adela and Iveta, two grandsons Daniel and Patrik and two grand-daughters Hana and Šarlota. He took very good care of his family.
In the years between 1966 – 1970 he went to the vocational school in Trnava, learning about the maintenance and operation of railway vehicles. He was able to find a job in this field as the head of the railway section of the Trnava sugar refinery, in which he worked until retiring.
His hobby was the history of the railways in the Trnava region. In 1996 a railway club called “Klub priateľov železníc Trnavy a okolia“ was founded and he was one of its first members. Later he was the secretary of this club. Since 2012 he was also a member of the association Tyrnaviavelo, which restores historical bicycles made before 1945.
Bohuslav Královič had other cultural interests too. His favourite singers and bands from Trnava were: Duo Live guitars, Pavel Opatovský & Jozef “Laci” Pagáč; from Slovakia: Dežo Ursíny (Beatmen, Soulmen); from Czechia: Vladimír Mišík (Matadors, Flamengo, ETC); and from other countries: The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Creedence Clearwater Revival. Among movies he liked The Magnificent Seven and the Czech movie Old Ironside (Železný dedek) with Jaroslav Marvan as the leading actor.
This book contains the experience and opinions which Bohuslav Královič has accumulated over 50 years living and working in Trnava and its railways. After his retirement he had a lot of memories to look back on, so he decided to prepare and publish a book. This book would contain everything he thought important about railways, and their importance to Trnava, to pass it on to the next generation. Unfortunately, he did not have the chance to present his work in a formal way, even though he was close to his initial goal.
Thanks to his family and friends his work won’t be forgotten, and it will be published to the public in the state in which he left it just before its initial release. The editor kept the author’s originality. As mentioned in the footnotes, the empty spaces which were initially left open for adding more photos, were replaced by a text which explains the context as to why the text is like it is. The author of the book would have surely explained it at a public presentation, but unfortunately that is not possible anymore.
It is also important to mention that in 2012 he asked a childhood friend of his, called Mark Engler, to give him some advice on how to create a book. He started bringing him various archive photos, and they scanned them together. Later he bought his own scanner, and they started to sort the photos into chapters, later into the exact order. With his wife they then wrote the text to the photos.
Slowly and surely, with an attention to detail, a book was written, which isn’t meant for studying, but rather meant for a means of relaxation, to look at photos and read their descriptions. For the old to be able to remember; for the young to be able to compare the past and the present.
The author doesn’t force his opinion on the reader, but rather just tells his stories in an honest, familiar descriptive manner: the history of the railways in Trnava, the olden days of Trnava and its region, how it was and how it won’t be anymore. The historical photos tell us a story about how the people of Trnava and its region used to live like and what role the railway played in their everyday lives.
Other than the book we also include something about the work of Bohuš at the railway club “KPŽT” in which he was a member since its founding in 1996. Bohuš didn’t concentrate his activities and memories only on his book, but also documented the railways in Trnava and its region. His collection from when he worked at the sugar refinery has become the base of the collection of the club “KPŽT”.
He also tried to tell the history of the railways in Trnava through a bulletin board of the “KPŽT” in the basement of the Trnava railway station. He helped make the bulletin board and put various texts and photos up for display on it, so passengers, who are waiting for a train, can read texts, and look at photos about the history of railways in Trnava and its region.
He helped to build the rail travel of Trnava memorial. He helped fixing rails, place the club wagons and renovate the steam locomotive O&K 2911, which are all part of the mentioned memorial at platform 4 at the railway station in Trnava. And so, not only children can look at: a real steam locomotive (even though not functional), railway signals, railway barrier and many other artefacts. During a stroll on platform 4 people can remember Bohuslav Královič who had a special place in his heart for railways and Trnava.