The great Locomotive Chase 1862 | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Chasing Yankees out of Georgia, Then and Now

    Here is the history of the Andrews Raid (The Great Locomotive Chase) that eventually was made into a movie Starring Fess Parker (of Davy Crocket fame) BCN Movie Database.

    If you are a native southerner you do doubt know that we won every battle up until General Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox. If he had just held off for a few more days, the South would rise again. One hundred and fifty one years later, many Rebels are still waiting for the South to rise again. Don't laugh, it is just possible, but the problem is that there may be more Yankees here now than native born Rebels. Of course, that has never stopped us before. We have always been outnumbered; it is a way of life down here.

    There are probably two songs that capture the spirit of the South. One is Dixie, which has been relegated to the trash heap since it is obviously a racist tune celebrating our dysfunctional past. The other is of course "The Night they Drove Old Dixie Down" written and sung by The Band. So far, that song is still allowed to be played and sang. My personal theory is because a Canadian wrote it. As everyone knows Canadians are not Yankees. The Band was all Canadians with the exception of Levon Helm who gave the group some authentic ambiance.

    The general story is that some dastardly Yankees captured a locomotive in Kennesaw (The Big Shanty) and drove it north destroying bridges and tracks along the way. The conductor of the stolen train gave chase on another locomotive. The story is now part of the folklore of the South's battle against Northern aggression that some people call the Civil War or War Between the States. Civil War Traveler

    For many years, the Chase Locomotive "The Texas" was housed in the Cyclorama in the Grant Park area of Atlanta. In our effort to purge the city of all vestiges of the Civil War, we have changed the name of streets from Confederate Generals to the current politicians. I don't mind that because politicians have always done that. Whoever is in control of the administration makes the rules. It's written in the Constitution somewhere I think.

    The Cyclorama is destined to be moved to Buckhead. For those not from Atlanta, Buckhead is a Yankee enclave that is just outside the official city limits of Atlanta. That is where the Atlanta History Center is located. It is also, where the Cyclorama and the Texas locomotive will eventually come to rest. That is until we decide that the property is just too valuable for a museum. I am actively scouting for property further from Atlanta where the Old South still exist. I thought I found a place called Tara that would be a perfect location but all my research indicated that no such place ever existed in Georgia. Hollywood yes, but not Georgia. The Atlanta History Center

    Here is an excerpt from the Movie
   
    For all the Canadians out there who could care less about Civil War History, here is The Band singing The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down. I'm sorry, it is one of my favorite non-Southern Southern songs. This is not the version from the Last Waltz Movie but the album by the same name which is featured on BCN here here

   

    Thank you for your patience and understanding, "Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory" but "In Dixie's Land I'll take my stand,to live and die in Dixie".

   Is that still wrong?

UPDATE MARCH 3, 2016

The Texas Will Undergo Historical Analysis, Restoration in the 1905 Back Shop at the N.C. Transportation Museum. The Texas Locomotive restoration project. If you live in this area, it might be worth a visit to see the Transportation Museum.

The N.C. Transportation Museum, located in historic Spencer Shops, the former Southern Railway repair facility is located just five minutes off I-85 at Exit 79 in Spencer, N.C., and about an hour from Charlotte, Greensboro or Winston-Salem. The museum is part of the Division of Historic Sites and the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.