25 November 2010 Last updated at 10:19

In pictures: Brazil's Devil's Railway

Workers laying tracks through the jungle - photograph by Dana B Merrill from archive of Museu Paulista, University of Sao Paulo

Construction of the Madeira-Mamore line through the Amazon posed a big engineering challenge. Tackling the terrain meant laying branches as a provisional base for the tracks while crossing marshy ground.

Tracks submerged by water. Photograph by Dana B Merrill from the archive of the Museu Paulista, Sao Paulo University

But work was hindered during the annual rainy season which led to swollen rivers, meaning as in this case, parts of the newly laid track were submerged.

Track being laid on difficult terrain. Photograph by Dana B Merrill, from the archive of the Museu Paulista, Sao Paulo University

Heavy rain also led to erosion of the soil in the cleared forest, twisting the tracks off their original course.

Porto Velho begins to take shape. Photograph by Dana B Merrill from the archive of the Museu Paulista, Sao Paulo University

In 1910, Porto Velho was beginning to take shape amid the rainforest. Today the city, which lies on the banks of the Madeira River, has a population of more than 380,000.

Couple sitting on their verandah. Photograph by Dana B Merrill from the archive of the Museu Paulista, Sao Paulo University

Conditions varied for those working on the railway line. Here is the house of an American engineer and his wife in Porto Velho, their verandah surrounded by mesh screens to try to keep mosquitoes at bay.

Porto Velho laundry. Photograph by Dana B Merrill from the archive of the Museu Paulista, Sao Paulo University

This photograph shows an American laundry boss and his "Barbadian" workers, a term used generally to refer to Caribbean immigrants. The laundry in Porto Velho had a steam press, regarded as something of a luxury at the time.

Workers on the railway line came from all over the world, including India, Europe and the US.

Brazilian authorities visit a newly constructed section of the railway track. Photo by Dana B Merrill from the archive of the Museu Paulista, Sao Paulo University

Bit by bit, the Madeira-Mamore line cut its way through the jungle, but its heyday was all too brief. American photograph Dana B Merrill took more than 2,000 photos of the railway's construction between 1909 and 1910. Only 189 of his negatives remain.

Despite some renovation work, remnants from an earlier era of steam travel are being reclaimed by the forest.

Restored sheds give a glimpse of what the railway line that took so long and so many lives to build was once like.

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In pictures: Brazil's Devil's Railway

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