The station and tourism
Intro
The railway from Skanderborg to Silkeborg was promulgated by Statute in 1868, and both the railway and Ry Station was opened to traffic on May 2, 1871.
The station was built on Siim Mark (Siim Field) as a class 5 station – that is a 4-section building with a waiting room of 60 square feet, an enquiry counter and an office of 40 square feet, plus an apartment for the station master of 120 square feet. The stations in Silkeborg and Skanderborg were class 3 and of course larger than the station in Ry
Ry Station was named after the area’s largest town, Rye, on the western side of the River Gudenå. In fact the station is situated at Siim Hede (Siim Heath) east of the river – thus on the outskirts of the village of Siim.
The stations along the new railway acted like magnets to artisans and small businesses from the surrounding area. These newcomers established themselves in the railway towns, and with the increased traffic the stations became too small. Ry Station was extended in 1898, and then again in 1900 - first with an extra section to the north and then with an extra storey added to the building’s height.
In 1890, 228 inhabitants were recorded in Ry railway town, and the figure has just grown and grown since then. Today there are approximately 5,500 inhabitants in Ry, which is a market town in Skanderborg municipality.
Ry and District Tourist Association was established in 1906 by Ry Artisan and Citizen Association, and a tourist office was opened in the nearby book shop. Today the tourist service of Skanderborg Municipality, Destination Skanderborg, is located at Ry Station.