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Casey Jones Museum

    Another attraction in Jackson, TN, in Madison County, is  the Casey Jones Home and Railroad Museum. It is privately owned by the main historian of Casey Jones and her husband. There are genuine antique railroad cars, including a duplicate of the engine that wrecked with Jones. This is another good family adventure.
    Inside the store and museum, there are many play stations for children, some with trains they can touch, and some that are for observation only. There are books galore, including the Thomas the Train series, and other toys, and even railroad outfits in tiny sizes. For the rest of us, there are train whistles and the usual memorabilia.
    There's a short film on Casey Jones, and lots of displays. Although not train related, they have a horse drawn hearse. My father was fascinated with it and had his picture made several times beside it. There are many objects from the time frame and information on trains, tracks, and so forth. Outside, adjacent to the building is old Engine 382. You can climb up the platform inside like I did and ring the bell (not a whistle). There's not much room for anything except shoveling coal into the engine.
    For those not familiar with Casey Jones, or who may have forgotten, Casey wasn't his real name, but he came from Caycee, and that stuck instead of John. He was always on time and was well known for his punctuality. There is still some question as to whether he received the proper signals or whether someone or even Casey made a mistake, but Casey realized there was a problem of two trains about to collide. He got all of his crew to jump off, but stayed with his engine. He managed to run off the tracks, killing himself, but keeping the passenger part of the train upright so that no one was injured or killed, except himself. He was a hero for sacrificing himself to save others.
      We know Casey's story, primarily because his coal shoveler worshiped him. He grieved so much over Casey's death, that he wrote the folk song we all heard as kids.
      As for his house, I learned that it was a "mirror house". Houses in small towns were built facing each other. It would be rude to do otherwise. With no radio, TV, or computers, folks sat on the front porch at night and called out to each other across the small yards.  The outhouse would be shared by two such houses. So as they passed each other between the houses, they met each other "coming and going", giving birth to an every day phrase we take for granted.
        If you want to check it out, it's close to the interstate. You know you're there, when you see a small engine suspended in the air from a pole.