Vaughan, Mississippi

What would make me stop and take a look at this unremarkable section of railroad track... a track that obviously hasn't seen any use in a while, with the wilderness of Mississippi slowly reclaiming the right-of-way?

Down this particular section of track - probably about where the right hand rail disappears into the brush - is the site of a historic wreck.  On April 30th, 1900, John Luther Jones - better known as Casey Jones - rode steam locomotive #382 to his death.  Casey's train would have been approaching us, with his view of the track somewhat obscured by the locomotive's boiler as it rounded the curve.  Accounts vary, but we know that Casey saw the other train too late to stop his own passenger train.  However, Casey was able to slow his train down to about 35 MPH (coming down from a reported 75 MPH) before the collision.  Casey was the only casualty, thanks to his efforts to stop the train.

The site of the wreck is just north of Vaughan, Mississippi.  It is not too far from I-55, although neither the town (which virtually doesn't exist anymore) or the site of the wreck are marked.  It took us a couple of trips over the road and a stop to ask a local man for information before we found it.  The historical marker of the site has been stolen, although we did find the sign post in amongst the weeds.  I pulled up to a driveway crossing the track and walked over it in order to snap this picture.

Some things are worth taking the time to see in person... even if the picture isn't very impressive.