Can anyone guess what happened today 119 years ago? I'll give y'all a hint: it was written into a song Johnny Cash.
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Some railroad catastrophe?
Or a prison being established?
Moonson posted:Some railroad catastrophe?
OK, I had to look it up but I won’t spoil the OP’s tease even though he’s given a very big hint. 
Is the event supposed to have happened at 3:52 am?
P.S. The tune is actually that used for the 1950s Good & Plenty candy song/jingle TV advertisement (Choo Choo Charlie), which somehow came back to me because the contents of the shaken box made something like a steamer sound! Such nostalgia. Anyway the jingle is preserved here: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ExSlyoVTX3I
Lionel Trains began!!!
Grampstrains posted:T'was the last day of work for Luther Jones on the Illinois Central.
Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!
"Mighty Casey struck out."
I'm late, but here is what it says about the incident.
"On April 30, 1900, that rainy morn, Down in Mississippi near the town of Vaughn, Sped the Cannonball Special only two minutes late, Traveling" 70 miles (110 km) "an hour when they saw a freight." Songwriter Wallace Saunders would immortalize "a relatively minor disaster on the Illinois Central" in The Ballad of Casey Jones. John Luther "Casey" Jones, driving a passenger train from Memphis to Canton, Mississippi, was speeding when he encountered two stalled freight trains on the main track at Vaughn, Mississippi. Although he was unable to avoid a collision, Jones slowed the train sufficiently that he was the only fatality of the accident, which happened at 3:42 a.m.
Here is the full story to the best of my memory. 
Late last night the Cannonball was delayed doo to heavy rains, but it eventually made it to where Casey was stationed. He was supposed to be done for the day except the crew members that were supposed to relive him did not come. By the time when Casey just decided to take the train he was about two hours late. As he sped through the night with a moaning engine taring through the night, up ahead a few stations two freight trains were getting off the main to let Casey go through. By this time Casey had nearly made up all the time that was lost. Back to the freight trains, on the rear train a break pipe broke and about three cars were still on the main. As Casey came into view he saw any man's worst nightmare. He saw the red tail lights of that freight train. First thing he did was he told Sam Webb to jump and tried to stop the locomotive as fast as he could. At the same time he pulled the hog's tail to clear any crew members that were in the way. In the end no one was hurt except for Casey and Sim lived to tell his friends heroic tall 119 years ago.
I was able to learn and see all of this at the Casey Jones Museum in Jackson, Tennessee. There they have Casey's locomotive and his very own home that he lived in. How this story lived on was through the music. Two examples would be Eddy Arnold and Johnny Cash. For his family they lived till the end of their days still remembering when they received the news that their daddy was not coming home that night.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhxHw-x-dPU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7AKH_lPuKU
The first link is to Eddy Arnold's version and the second one is Johnny's. In todays time both of these songs hang on through country music fans (or railroad buffs) and the name Casey Jones has been twisted into a ninja turtle character. In truth people may go and change his name into something else, but you can never change what he did 119 years ago.
I believe it was also immortalized by the Grateful Dead in Casey Jones (1972).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_x2m6i4KFqg
Different generation fellas.
Yes he was and in the 50's he was put in a stamp in a series of three. Also, at the same time there was a tv show about him.
Trainmaster04 posted:
I was able to learn and see all of this at the Casey Jones Museum in Jackson, Tennessee. There they have Casey's locomotive and his very own home that he lived in.
Well, not quite.
The locomotive being displayed as IC 382 is former Carolina, Clinchfied & Ohio #99 built by Baldwin. IC 382 was built by Rogers and was scrapped in 1932.
Rusty
Are there any kind of observances of the anniversary of this event, either in Vaughn or at the official museum?
that would be the Wreck of Old 97.
Rusty Traque posted:Trainmaster04 posted:
I was able to learn and see all of this at the Casey Jones Museum in Jackson, Tennessee. There they have Casey's locomotive and his very own home that he lived in.
Well, not quite.
The locomotive being displayed as IC 382 is former Carolina, Clinchfied & Ohio #99 built by Baldwin. IC 382 was built by Rogers and was scrapped in 1932.
Rusty
I thought thats what the museum said, but I could not remember. Thanks for the reminder.
tncentrr posted:Are there any kind of observances of the anniversary of this event, either in Vaughn or at the official museum?
My best guess would be that the museum would be doing something about it. For other places I do not know.
In 1950 Uncle Walt Disney took a swing at the legend, too.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbTBk4pDIHA
Bob
I always wondered about this story, I thought when a train broke down/stalled/blocked the tracks, the brakeman was supposed to go back up the track and either light flares (fuzees) or put an explosive (torpedo) on the track to warn oncoming trains. Did they have an active investigation of the wreck and did they ever assign blame? The way the story is told, it almost is saying Jones was reckless, but this sounds to be like the stalled train crew was at fault.
I was going to say Rich Melvin was born...
Curt
"Kasey Jones" was a blues and folk song-inspired tune from the Negro lexicon, and dates back to about the time just following the wreck. It is probably why Casey Jones specifically was immortalized. It was widely performed and recorded; here is the history of the ballad: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...allad_of_Casey_Jones
Here is the great Mississippi John Hurt doing "Casey Jones": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfG3s10mfxE
Believe the Grateful Dead were praising cocaine usage, not Casey Jones !
bigkid posted:I always wondered about this story, I thought when a train broke down/stalled/blocked the tracks, the brakeman was supposed to go back up the track and either light flares (fuzees) or put an explosive (torpedo) on the track to warn oncoming trains. Did they have an active investigation of the wreck and did they ever assign blame? The way the story is told, it almost is saying Jones was reckless, but this sounds to be like the stalled train crew was at fault.
At the time of when the train stalled Casey was coming through the station. I believe the blame went to bad equipment and was tossed in the wind because Casey saved his passengers. Finally at the time there were not a lot of speed restrictions so engineers going as fast as they can was probably a normal sight, but to say that he saved everyone is rare. On the investigation part I do not know.
Here's a rare film of Casey Jones before he began offering three-hour cruises.
I'm sure there were several birthdays on that day as well.
Joe Biden's birthday?
There was in fact a brakeman sent back to protect the train nagging out on the main. Testimony conflicts as to where he was and whether or not he was seen, but the only person who can answer the question finally was Jones, and he wasn't around to testify.
Jones was no doubt very tired having come off the north-bound run to go right back south. Like as not, he didn't see what was right in front of his eyes or at least it didn't register in his head. It's really easy to criticize him, but he and his actions were a product of the RRing culture of the day. His name would have been lost in obscurity had it not been for the song, but, whatever errors he committed, he atoned for them with his life (and not the lives of any others). He lived in an age when engineers were lionized, and so it was easy, also, to lionize him.
Trainmaster04 posted:Can anyone guess what happened today 119 years ago?
Yes, Eddy G. was born. Don
Casey in 638
382, unsure of the engineer.
"Casey Jones you better watch your speed
Trouble ahead, trouble behind
And you know that notion just crossed my mind"
"This old engine makes it on time
Leaves Central Station 'bout a quarter to nine
Hits River Junction at seventeen two
At a quarter to ten you know it's travelin' again"
"Trouble ahead, Lady in red
Take my advice you'd be better off dead
Switchman's sleeping, train hundred and two is
On the wrong track and headed for you"
"Drive your train, whoo
Trouble with you is the trouble with me
Got two good eyes but you still don't see
Come round the bend, you know it's the end
The fireman screams and the engine just gleams"
bigkid posted:I always wondered about this story, I thought when a train broke down/stalled/blocked the tracks, the brakeman was supposed to go back up the track and either light flares (fuzees) or put an explosive (torpedo) on the track to warn oncoming trains. Did they have an active investigation of the wreck and did they ever assign blame? The way the story is told, it almost is saying Jones was reckless, but this sounds to be like the stalled train crew was at fault.
It was a foggy night. Casey’s fireman, Sim Webb, said they saw no flares and heard no torpedos. Casey was on the wrong side of the cab to see the lighted red caboose on the track ahead (due to the curve in the track), but Sim Webb, on the other side of the cab was first to see the cars ahead on the track. He alerted Casey who immediately told Sim to jump off the train while grabbing both the brake and the whistle. Sim Webb stuck with that story for the remainder of his life.
Well the day is nearly over and that means that this post will soon be over, so goodnight to all. Casey enjoy another 119 years of railroading in big roundhouse in the sky.
Mississippi John Hurt's version.
