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Musee d'Orsay
A bit of history

A railway station turned museum

A new railway station was built on the opposite side of the Seine to the Louvre just in time for the Paris Exposition of 1900. The Gare d’Orsay was an ultra-modern station designed by architect Victor Laloux.

The space above the station became a hotel, with a banquet hall that clubs and associations could hire out to put on events.

Musée d'Orsay Paris: opening hours and tickets 2025! - museos

With modern electric trains taking the place of old steam trains, the station could have a closed roof.

In 1939 and the years that followed, the station was repurposed. It became a reception centre for prisoners of war and concentration camp survivors in 1945.
The station also provided a backdrop for film-makers (Orson Welles and Bernardo Bertolucci).

But what about the long-term plans for this disused railway station?

All kinds of ideas were put forward… An office building for Caisse des dépôts. An administration centre for Air France. A proposal to Exhibition Misia, Queen of Paris | Musée d'Orsay XYFI