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Private company

Societé de La Meuse

Belgian manufacturing and engineering company

Ateliers de construction de La Meuse (French pronunciation: ) are a manufacturing and engineering company based in Liège in Belgium. During the period from 1888 to 1958, La Meuse built 1350 steam locomotives some for Belgian State Railways (later NMBS/SNCB), and many more for industrial networks. Of these a substantial number survive worldwide.2 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1872Founded1
  • Industrylocomotive manufacturing1
  • HeadquartersLiège1
  • Founded inLiège1
  • Legal formPublic limited company (Belgium)1

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Ateliers de construction de La Meuse (French pronunciation: [atəlje də kɔ̃stʁyksjɔ̃ də la møz]) are a manufacturing and engineering company based in Liège in Belgium. During the period from 1888 to 1958, La Meuse built 1350 steam locomotives some for Belgian State Railways (later NMBS/SNCB), and many more for industrial networks. Of these a substantial number survive worldwide.2

The story

The origins of the business date back to the 16th century. During 1835 Charles Marcellis, forge master, moved his business to La Boverie, Liège. The company was set up as Société Anonyme des Ateliers de la Meuse. In 1872, the name was changed to Société Anonyme des Ateliers de construction de La Meuse. These new workshops were erected on the site they currently occupy between the Meuse river and the Paris-Namur-Liége-Cologne rail line. Expansion followed so that they occupied an area of about ten hectares. The company produced heavy industrial equipment for mining and metallurgy. The first locomotives were built in 1887 for the SNCV, and La Meuse would be the last company to deliver a steam locomotive to NMBS/SNCB.

In 1889, there was produced a narrow gauge locomotive for an industrial user. They went on to eventually build over 800 locomotives for industrial users. Their customers were mostly Belgium, but also Italy, Yugoslavia, Morocco, Congo, Romania, Turkey, Spain, Latin America and the Netherlands.

From Wikipedia’s article on Ateliers de construction de La Meuse, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.3

Timeline

  1. 1872Founded Founded in Liège1

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

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