Casey Jones

(THEME)

VOICE ONE:

I'm Gwen Outen.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Steve Ember with PEOPLE IN AMERICA in VOA Special
English. Today, we tell the story of Casey Jones. He was a famous
railroad engineer. His life has been described and celebrated in
stories and songs.

(THEME)

VOICE ONE:

Many Americans are very interested in railroad trains that were
pulled by steam-powered engines a long time ago. Steam engines
produced bright, fiery particles and clouds of smoke as they
traveled across the countryside. People who miss steam engines often
say each one had its own personality. They say the engines were
living, breathing things -- not machines. A railroad lover would
say: "Airplanes, space vehicles and automobiles are fine -- but I
wish I was back in the days of Casey Jones."

VOICE TWO:

John Luther Jones was born in eighteen-sixty-four in the state of
Kentucky. As a boy, he lived in the small town of Cayce, Kentucky.
It is from this town that he got the name Casey.

The young man's first railroad experience was with the Mobile
(MO-beel) and Ohio Railroad in Columbus, Kentucky. At age fifteen,
he worked as a telegraph operator. He sent and received messages for
the railroad.

Later, Casey Jones accepted a job as a brakeman for the Mobile
and Ohio. He inspected railroad cars and assisted other train crew
members. Then, he became a fireman on the company's rail line
between Columbus and Mobile, Alabama. He added coal to the fires
that powered the steam engines.

VOICE ONE:

Casey Jones grew to be a tall man. He was
one-hundred-ninety-three centimeters tall. He married a woman named
Janie Brady. In eighteen-eighty-eight, Casey Jones joined the
Illinois Central Railroad. He worked as a fireman on the rail line
between Jackson, Tennessee and Water Valley, Mississippi. There were
a lot of job possibilities with the Illinois Central. In two years,
he became a driver, or engineer, with the company. This was the job
he always wanted. He operated trains between Jackson and Water
Valley for the next nine years.

VOICE TWO:

Casey Jones spent the summer of eighteen-ninety-three in Chicago,
Illinois. Large crowds gathered there for a major event -- the
Chicago World's Fair. Jones provided rides for people going to and
coming from the fairgrounds. He drove a steam engine known by its
number: six-thirty-eight. At the end of the World's Fair, number
six-thirty-eight was supposed to return to Water Valley, Mississippi
for repairs. Jones asked for and received permission to drive the
engine there.

VOICE ONE:

Casey Jones loved steam engines. He would talk to engine
six-thirty-eight as the train was climbing a hill. He would say:
"Come on, honey, you can do it." When he pulled the whistle, he
would say: "Sing, sweetie. Kiss the wind with your voice."

((CUT ONE: SFX: train whistle))

Jones became famous as the driver whose train was never late. He
always brought his train in to a station on time. He also was famous
for his skill at making different sounds with a railroad whistle. He
would blow the whistle so it started softly, but would increase to a
loud cry before disappearing. People would recognize that sound and
knew when he was passing through the area. Whenever they heard it,
they would say: "Casey Jones is coming, sure as the day of
judgement."

(CUT ONE: SFX train whistle)

VOICE TWO:

In nineteen-hundred, Casey Jones was given the job of driving the
Cannonball Express. This passenger train operated between Memphis,
Tennessee and Canton, Mississippi. It was a difficult trip of about
three-hundred kilometers, with several dangerous areas and turns.
Some engineers avoided the trip, fearing for their safety. But not
Casey Jones. Everything was fine until April twenty-ninth. That
night, Jones completed his normal Cannonball Express run from Canton
to Memphis with his fireman, Sim Webb.

Just as Jones was leaving the train, he heard that his
replacement on the next train was sick. The supervisor asked Jones
if he would like to drive the train from Memphis to Canton. Both he
and Webb were tired, but they agreed. Jones told the supervisor he
wanted to use his own engine. Jones and his fireman had to wait
while the train was prepared for the trip. Finally, they climbed on
the steam engine and set off into the night, more than an hour late.

VOICE ONE:

Casey had orders not to arrive late in Canton. This was not a
problem for Casey. He asked Sim Webb to add extra coal to the engine
to make it travel faster.

There are different reports about what happened early the next
morning, as the train sped through Mississippi. The problems started
near the little town of Vaughan. Three other trains were already in
the area. However, their crews had begun taking action to let the
Cannonball pass.

Everything would have been fine, except for a mechanical problem.
An air hose in one of the other trains burst. This caused a delay in
clearing the rail line. Some cars were still on the main line and
could not move.

VOICE TWO:

The Cannonball continued speeding forward. Suddenly, Casey saw
the other train. Quickly, he pulled the whistle and pushed the brake
to slow the Cannonball. But he knew it was too late. He told Sim
Webb to jump off the train. However, Casey stayed on the train.

Some people say the sound the engine made as it hit the other
train was like the Earth had burst. The passengers and crew survived
the train wreck. Among them was fireman Sim Webb.

However, Casey did not survive. His body was discovered in the
wreckage. One hand was still holding the brake. The other was
holding the whistle. Because he stayed on the train, he had slowed
the Cannonball enough so that none of the passengers were hurt. He
had sacrificed his life for them.

VOICE ONE:

The body of Casey Jones was returned to his hometown of Jackson,
Tennessee. That is where he was buried.

Railroad officials ordered an investigation into the wreck of the
Cannonball. The investigation found that Casey Jones alone was
responsible for the crash. He had not reacted to signs that he
should stop the train. However, people also remembered his love of
railroads and how he died trying to save the lives of others.

(MUSIC BRIDGE)

VOICE TWO:

The story of Casey Jones would have ended with his death if not
for a black man named Wallace Saunders. Saunders was a railroad
worker who knew Jones from his stops in Canton, Mississippi.
Saunders was deeply saddened by his friend's death. He decided to
create a song to honor the famous engineer. It is called "The Ballad
of Casey Jones."

Visitors to Canton heard Saunders performing the song. One
visitor liked what he heard, but decided to change some of the
words. Soon, the song became popular, and found its way to
Vaudeville shows. Vaudeville was the most popular form of show
business in the United States in the early nineteen-hundreds. The
popularity of the song helped keep the memory of Casey Jones alive.

Today, "The Ballad of Casey Jones" is still heard when Americans
gather to sing songs of long ago. Listen now as Ernie Sheldon and
the Villagers perform "Casey Jones."

((CUT THREE: Casey Jones LP-5395 1:30))

VOICE ONE:

In nineteen-thirty-eight, Jones was honored in his boyhood home
of Cayce, Kentucky. Today, there are museums named in his honor in
Water Valley and in Vaughan, Mississippi. The museums also keep the
memory of Casey Jones alive.

(THEME OR MORE CASEY JONES UNDER CLOSE)

VOICE TWO:

This program was written by George Grow. Caty Weaver was our
producer. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Gwen Outen. Join us again next week for PEOPLE IN AMERICA
in VOA Special English.