Many years ago, I read a humorous observation which probably appeared in Trains magazine. If only John Henry had had access to career counselling and skills retraining ... and Casey Jones had been actively engaged in a 'safety culture' which provided negative outcomes for exceeding speed limits ... things would have been very different.
My early knowledge of this legend came from inaccurate illustrations in childhood books and the 1957-58 Alan Hale Jr. series in reruns. Finding the account below was a welcome opportunity to review the events with the advantage of the on-line resources which only collectors might have owned in the past.
When we get down to the 1936 interview of Casey Jones's Fireman (re-published in 1953) you'll notice that descriptors of people who look different from George Washington have changed since then. If you read Jones's 1939 biography, you'll see even more 'typical' southern terminology used.... People - if they want to identify themselves a particular way - should be the ones to choose the appropriate words for that purpose.
Here is the photo of Sim Webb which appears in the 1939 biography of Casey Jones.
There are several different accounts of the events which occurred at at 0352hr, 30 April 1900 at Vaughan, Mississippi. There is not even agreement between the accounts on whether there was adequate rest time between trips, or whether Sim and Casey 'doubled out' with only one hour off duty that night.
Memories may change over time. Inconvenient facts may be omitted. Or, as a person's circumstances change, they may be more free to talk about the experiences they had earlier in life.
A cursory knowledge of recent railway rules would lead to the conclusion that a couple of safety practices were not rigorously employed to protect life and property, leading to the collision at Vaughan.
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| from: Casey Jones, Epic of the American Railroad; Fred J Lee; 1939; Southern. archive.org |
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| from: Casey Jones, Epic of the American Railroad; Fred J Lee; 1939; Southern. archive.org |
The Biography written by a friend.
The biography of John Luther Jones (1864-1900) was written by a conductor - Fred J Lee - who had known him personally. When it occurred, 39 years earlier, Jones's accident was typical of hundreds or thousands just like it. Most of these accidents were prevented with the advent of electric block signals. However, the song created an enduring folk legend, back when popular culture didn't move with the volume and velocity of YouTube and TikTok.
The interview of Sim Webb about the collision was published in a widely-read railroad periodical three years before Fred J Lee's biography came out. It seems possible that Webb's account may have precipitated a more fact-based approach to the events and legend of Casey Jones than the song had offered. The book's reference data and source are shown in the the photo caption above if you want to read it.
Perhaps, being at or near the end of his career, Lee wished to revisit and document events which occurred earlier in his career - in the good old days. Perhaps he felt compelled to create this monument, which was done with the support and endorsement of Jones's widow.
In his recounting of the accident at the end of the book, Lee provides no new insights on the possible rules or procedures violations which were responsible for the collision.
An Explanation for the Origin of 'Casey'
Jones's railroad career began as a telegrapher on the GM&O, but it was his life's goal (just like the rest of us) to become an engineer.
The Welsh soldiers depicted at Rorke's Drift in the movie Zulu were given numbers to allow the British Army to differentiate between individuals with the very common family name 'Jones' ... and we can imagine to sort out all of the soldiers named 'John Jones' - one of a few very common Welsh names of the time.
According to Casey's biography, there were too many Jones to keep track of in railroad telegraphy as well, so John Luther Jones at Cayce was identified as 'Casee Jones'. As in: 'He's the Brockville Jones' or 'the Belleville Jones'. However, I don't know if anything in these paragraphs would survive a rigorous historical examination by a professional historian.
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| from: 1928 Handy Railroad Atlas of the United States (reprint); 1928; Rand McNally. |
On the night in question, Casey and Sim's southbound passenger train left Memphis (at the top centre of the map) and they would have gone off duty at Canton - just north of Jackson.
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An earlier 1912 map (below) shows more detail of the Sardis to Canton segment (seen above).
Below: Sardis is at the top, centre of the map. Canton is at the bottom, centre of the map.
Vaughan is the third settlement north of Canton.
Another settlement 'Way' - south of Vaughan - is mentioned in Webb's account.
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| from: Industrial Review of New York (atlas); 1912; George F Cram. |
The short account below appeared first in: Railroad Stories; Eldon Roark; March 1936; Frank A Munsey.
Here it is reproduced from: A Treasury of Railroad Folklore; Botkin & Harlow; 1953; Bonanza.
The diagram below shows the general situation at Vaughan when the Fast Mail arrived.
Among the safety practices generally used to prevent a collision here would be:
- A long whistle at the mileboard for Vaughan - a warning of the Fast Mail's approach.
- Using reasonable caution approaching a station where congested traffic (such as train orders suggested Jones might find at Vaughan) could have been expected.
- Flagging with an appropriate unobstructed view as seen by an approaching train.
- Flagging a sufficient distance from the movement being protected to allow an approaching train to safely stop before reaching any equipment fouling the main track.
- Flagging signals would include torpedoes, fusees (if used), and a red flagging lantern. (In one resourceful case, a flagman concluded he had not been seen at night so he hurled his lantern into the passing cab - the sudden appearance of the broken red lantern globe alerted the engine crew of the danger his flagging was intended to communicate.)
The presence of a flagman was noted in the Superintendent's official report of the accident. This type of self-regulating operations review was usually the final verdict on minor accidents during this era.
In Webb's account, you'll notice it was No 83's (unturned) marker lights which gave the first warning of main track fouling - not anyone's flagging efforts. No mention is made of torpedoes - although their use is prescribed in a 1900-dated maintenance of way rulebook for the Illinois Central at archive.org .
At the time, this was just another railroad accident with a relatively low toll taken on people and equipment. It has a significance to history because of the legend created by the song. In 1900, it was a relatively insignificant event ... except, probably, for any employees deemed to have violated rules.
But ... if there was adequate flagging (as the survivors must have recounted) the only rules violation was speed. There was no one alive to discipline for excessive speed so no formal follow up was needed.
... RMS Titanic, LZ 129 Hindenburg, Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 ...
With major unsolved transportation disasters which have faded into history, there always seems to be a nagging desire to really understand exactly how such disasters could have happened. At the time, any survivors gave their accounts and that was it. Without the necessary scientific tools, access to, or process to, examine the transportation vehicle at the time, people in the future are drawn into the mystery.
We are a pretty small and specialized cohort - those interested in historical railroad disasters.
Imagine having an investigative group to immediately attend the scene at Vaughan:
- Looking for evidence where the spent torpedoes had been placed.
- Checking the rails and driving wheels for metallurgical evidence that Jones's locomotive was thrown into reverse and where this occurred.
- Calculating the probable speed of the Fast Mail.
- Conducting skilled examination of the crews of the freight trains performing the saw-by moves to determine why a disabled freight train caused the main line to be fouled. Developing a timeline of what each employee was doing before the collision.
- Determining if it was an air hose or a broken coupler which immobilized one of the freights.
In the end, at least we have the RMS Carpathia's heroic efforts (and selfless acts by passengers of the Titanic) and Casey Jones remaining at his post until the end.
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| from: 3:52 AM April 30, 1900 (article in Trains); Robert B Shaw; May 1965: Kalmbach. |
Here are a few more views of the historical environment back then ...
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| from: Casey Jones, Epic of the American Railroad; Fred J Lee; 1939; Southern. archive.org |
The current on-line resources are very helpful in revising the childhood images of this event. One of the engineers on one of the trains at Vaughan (like Jones) knew telegraphy. The telegraph office at Vaughan was closed for the night. In spite of the significant presence of trains at the location, it was necessary for Gaffney to break in to the station to be able to notify officials of the accident so trains would be held ... and to receive their instructions on how operations should proceed.
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| from: History of the Illinois Central Railroad; 1900; Railroad Historical Company. archive.org |
Casey Jones was in freight service for several years at Water Valley. This book is half history of the railroad and half biographies of past and current notable personages of the railroad circa 1900. This type of industrial documentation book anticipated brisk sales to the people profiled, with extra copies being purchased for family members.
Now, or until recently, a Casey Jones museum has existed at Water Valley at or near the location of the main line - although there is no current railroad presence surviving there today.
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| from: History of the Illinois Central Railroad; 1900; Railroad Historical Company. archive.org |
Also in this history is a photo of an engine similar to Casey Jones's own engine, the 382.
Unfortunately, the image is very dark and it was difficult to bring up much detail of the running gear.
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| from: History of the Illinois Central Railroad; 1900; Railroad Historical Company. archive.org |
A typical caboose helps us imagine the one which suddenly appeared at Vaughan.
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Above, a current Google Maps view looking timetable south.
The track may have been re-aligned since 1900, but today there is long stretch of tangent track before the line's long curve into Vaughan.
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Looking timetable south toward the tangent section between Pickens and the long curve into Vaughan.
A view of the current track structure. Pickens is shown on the 1912 map, above.
Seen in a Google Maps view from 2023.
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Current Google Maps view above Vaughan looking timetable north.
There are no village buildings visible at Vaughan
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| from: Casey Jones, Epic of the American Railroad; Fred J Lee; 1939; Southern. archive.org |
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