Energy and railway workshops: An archaeology of the FEPASA complex (Jundiaí, Brazil)

Abstract

Railway workshops overlapped the fields of energy and transport and witnessed profound technological evolution over time due to changes in energy production, distribution and consumption. Here, I use archaeological methods to investigate the railway workshop owned by the Companhia Paulista de Estradas de Ferro in Jundiaí (Brazil), in operation from the end of the nineteenth century to 1998 and today known as FEPASA Complex. In doing so, I aim to highlight the role of energy and power supply in the evolution of railway workshops, and how this influenced its organization of space and labour. I state that, even when written sources are available and abundant, archaeology can offer an important angle to understand the transport industry.