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Old 97 was a Southern Railway train officially known as the Fast Mail. The train started its career on December 1902, close to two years after Casey Jones's death. It ran from Washington DC to Atlanta, Georgia. On September 27, 1903 while en route from Monroe, Virginia, to Spencer, North Carolina, the train derailed at Stillhouse Trestle near Danville, Virginia. The wreck inspired a famous railroad ballad, which was the focus of a convoluted copyright lawsuit but became seminal in the genre of country music.〔 ==Wreck== The wreck of Old 97 occurred when the engineer, 33-year-old Joseph A. ("Steve") Broady, at the controls of engine number 1102, was operating the train at high speed in order to stay on schedule and arrive at Spencer on time (''Fast Mail'' had a reputation for never being late). Locomotive 1102, a ten wheeler (4-6-0) engine built by Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia, had rolled out of the factory in early 1903, less than a year before the wreck. After the wreck the engine was rebuilt and served for slightly over 32 years before being scrapped on July 9, 1935. While the train was discontinued on January 6, 1907 this was not due to the wreck of the Old 97. On the day of the accident, Old 97 was behind schedule when it left Washington, DC and was one hour late when it arrived in Monroe, Virginia. When the train arrived in Monroe, it switched train crews and when it left Monroe there were 17 people on board. The train personnel included Joseph A. Broady (the engineer) dubbed "Steve" by his friends, John Blair (the conductor), A.C. Clapp (a fireman), John Hodge (a student fireman) sometimes known as Dodge in other documents, and James Robert Moody (the flagman). Also aboard were various mail clerks including J.L. Thompson, Scott Chambers, Daniel Flory, Paul Argenbright, Lewis Spies, Frank Brooks, Percival Indermauer, Charles Reames, Jennings Dunlap, Napoleon Maupin, J. H. Thompson, and W. R. Pinckney, an express messenger. When the train pulled into Lynchburg, VA, Wentworth Armistead (a safe locker) boarded the train so at the time of the wreck, there were 18 men aboard. Nine were immediately killed,〔(Gendiasters )〕 of the eleven men who died, and seven were injured. Among the deceased were the conductor Blair, engineer Broady, and flagman Moody.〔Freeman H. Hubbard,Railroad Avenue: Great Stories and Legends of American Railroading(New York:Whittlesey House,1945),253〕 The bodies of both firemen were recovered, but they were mangled so badly they were unrecognizable. There were several survivors to the wreck who believed they survived because they jumped from the train just before the fatal plunge. Among the three survivors was an individual named J. Harris Thompson of Lexington. Harris was a mail-clerk who served on the Southern Railroad. He later retired on May 1, 1941. W. R. Pinckney, the express messenger who also survived went home, located in Charlotte, N.C, and immediately resigned after his life changing experience. Two other survivors included Jennings J. Dunlap, and M.C. Maupin. These two men did not resign and continued their work, although they started in new departments. Dunlap went to work on a train that ran between Washington and Charlotte, while Maupin worked at the Charlotte union station.〔Freeman H. Hubbard,Railroad Avenue: Great Stories and Legends of American Railroading(New York:Whittlesey House,1945),255〕 At Monroe, Broady was instructed to get the ''Fast Mail'' to Spencer, 166 miles distant, on time. The scheduled running time from Monroe to Spencer was four hours, fifteen minutes, an average speed of approximately 39 mph (62.4 km/h). In order to make up the one hour delay, the train's average speed would have to be at least 51 mph (82 km/h). Broady was ordered to maintain speed through Franklin Junction, an intermediate stop normally made during the run. The route between Monroe and Spencer was rolling terrain and there were numerous danger points due to the combination of grades and tight radius curves. Signs were posted to warn engineers to watch their speed. However, in his quest to stay on time, engineer Broady rapidly descended a heavy grade that ended at the 45-foot high Stillhouse Trestle, which spanned Stillhouse Branch. He was unable to sufficiently reduce speed as he approached the curve leading into the trestle, causing the entire train to derail and plunge into the ravine below. The flames that erupted afterwards made incredible headway that consumed all the jagged debris of the wooden cars. It was very hard for the local fire department to extinguish the fire. Due to the fire combined with so few witnesses to the scene, the investigation that followed was greatly hampered. in the end it was concluded that nine people were killed, including the locomotive crew and a number of clerks in the mail car coupled between the tender and the rest of the train. Only a fraction of the mail had survived, including a large case filled with canaries that managed to escape and fly to safety. Engine 1102 was recovered, repaired,and it went on to perform further duties until it was dismantled in July 1935. The day after the wreck, Vice-president Finley made a speech where he was quoted for saying "The train consisted of two postal cars, one express and one baggage car for the storage of mail.... Eyewitnesses said the train was approaching the trestle at speeds of 30 to 35 miles an hour.〔Lance Phillips,Yonder Comes The Train:The story of the Iron Horse and some of the Roads it Traveled(New York:A.S.Barnes and Co.,Inc,1965),371〕" The Southern Railway placed blame for the wreck on engineer Broady, disavowing that he had been ordered to run as fast as possible to maintain the schedule. The railroad also claimed he descended the grade leading to Stillhouse Trestle at a speed of more than 70 mph (112 km/h). Several eyewitnesses to the wreck, however, stated that the speed was probably around 50 mph (80 km/h). In all likelihood, the railroad was at least partially to blame, as they had a lucrative contract with the U.S. Post Office to haul mail (hence the train's name), the contract including a penalty clause for each minute the train was late into Spencer. It is probably safe to conclude that the engineers piloting the ''Fast Mail'' were always under pressure to stay on time so the railroad would not be penalized for late mail delivery. Southern Railway's Train 97 was in another fatal accident earlier in the year of 1903. On Monday, April 13, Train 97 left Washington, DC at 8 AM en route to New Orleans. As the train approached Lexington, North Carolina it collided with a boulder on the track, causing the train to derail and ditch, killing the engineer and fireman. The locomotive that was pulling the train is unknown. Southern #1102 had yet to be delivered to the railroad at that time. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Wreck of the Old 97」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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