Dutchman's Curve wreck
The worst railroad accident in U.S. history took place on July 9, 1918 in the Nashville suburb of Belle Meade with 121 lives lost, according to a contemporary report in the Nashville Tennessean newspaper. The story of that fateful day and its aftermath is told in the non-fiction book The Day the Whistles Cried. The book’s author Betsy Thorpe will be on hand to talk about her research and writing at the third annual Dixie Line Days train show Saturday, April 25, in Wartrace.
The show will also present historian Terry Coats, author of Next Stop On Grandpa’s Road (History & Architecture of NC&StL Railway Depots & Terminals), with a video presentation. Coats is president of the the NC&StL Railway Preservation Society. Tom Knowles, curator of the Cowan Railroad Museum and a licensed steam locomotive engineer, will also appear with a video presentation. Admission to the multi-media event is free and will be held at the Smith House Theater. Books will be available for sale and signed by the authors.
Dixie Line Days is a celebration of the railroad with operating model layouts, dealer swap tables, modeling how-to clinics, model and switching contests, hourly door prizes, and full size prototype mainline trains roaring through downtown Wartrace courtesy of the CSX railroad. Food will be available at several locations.
Train show hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, April 25. Admission to displays and swap tables is $5. for adults and children under twelve $3. All events will be held in downtown Wartrace with signs directing attendees to each attraction. All venues are handicap accessible.
Dixie Line Days is presented by the Dixie Flyer hobby shop which will have extended hours during the show. For additional information call 1-800-465-0448 or visit www.dixieflyertrains.com. Wartrace is on State Highway 64, 10 miles west of exit 97 off I-24 and eight miles east of Shelbyville on Highway 64.
2014 Dixie Line Days train show