Wabash CannonBall


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V&AL

Fred's Loco Shop Foreman
Interesting fact: The train was named for the song, not the other way around!!

"In the wake of the song's popularity, the Wabash Railroad named its express run between Detroit and St. Louis as the Wabash Cannon Ball in 1949, the only actual train to bear the name, which it carried until discontinued in 1971.[4] However, the train was named after the song, not the other way around."
From:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wabash_Cannonball
 
You learn something new everyday. Interesting. Thanks for sharing. Love the song by the way, but I think Orange Blossom Special is tops for me.
 
I rode the Cannonball many times in 1969-1971 while I was in college at the University of Illinois in Champaign.

The train picked us up at a grade crossing in the middle of nowhere in east central Illinois where I boarded for the trip to Montpelier, Ohio. The price of the ticket included a bus ride from Champaign to the crossing and from the crossing to Champaign on the return trip.

The Cannonball was rather seedy by then, but I loved the ride. You could get sandwiches aboard the train, and on some of my early trips, there was a club car! It never seemed terribly crowded except at Christmas time.

We sometimes made a long stop in Indiana; a crew change maybe?

Great memories!

- Jeff
 
I have similar memories of the 'City of New Orleans' before it was taken over by Amtrak. I was just a kid then not even to my teen years but the memories are special to me nonetheless. Thanks for sharing.
 
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