Historic Railroad Songs

[Brakeman Hal]

Roy Acuff's "Wabash Cannonball" is always a great listen!

(last verse)

"Listen to the Jingle, the Rumble and the Roar,
As she glides along the woodlands, through the hills and by the shore.
Hear the mighty rush of the Engine, hear the lonesome Hobo squall,
Your travelin' through the Jungles on the Wabash Cannonball!"

(Jungles were the Hobo Camps along the railroad tracks in the Depression)

Hal

 

[Patrick]

I had a great uncle that hobo'ed from southern Illinois during the depression. Ended up in Michigan and actually found a job, which then brought the rest of my grandmother's family to the area where I was born.

 

[jdetray]

I rode the Wabash Cannonball to and from the University of Illinois in the early 1970s. In Illinois, I bought a ticket that included a bus ride to a grade crossing in Tolono, Illinois, where the train stopped to pick up and drop off passengers. I then road the train through the night to Montpelier, Ohio. Great memories! And of course Johnny Cash recorded a version of "The Wabash Cannonball."

- Jeff

 

[KB02]

"Down by the Station."
One of the only songs I remember learning when I was... like... 5 years old.