This is a members only event for the Southern Museum of Civil War & Locomotive History.

Different communities had wildly different relationships with the railroad.

The state-owned Western & Atlantic Railroad shaped many communities in North Georgia, but a community like Clarksville, Tennessee, struggled mightily for decades to attract and build a railroad. While Georgia had a state-owned organization, the neighbors to the north had to find the capital to build a railroad. First, they built the Memphis, Clarksville & Louisville Railroad.

When a larger railroad bought it, they tried again with nearly the same plan, an ambitious proposal to build the Indiana, Alabama & Texas Railroad between Mobile, Alabama, and Evansville, Indiana. Instead, they managed to build 30 miles in Kentucky and Tennessee.

“If you don’t succeed, try again.” Right?

About Todd DeFeo

Author Todd DeFeo has studied railroads since growing up alongside the Northeast Corridor line in New Jersey. He is the editor of Railfanning.org and founder of The DeFeo Groupe. Today, he lives near the historic Western & Atlantic. He has written books about the Western & Atlantic, the Memphis, Clarksville & Louisville and the Indiana, Alabama & Texas railroads. He has also published a book about the history of streetcars in Clarksville, Tennessee. DeFeo is an avid traveler, photographer, amateur historian, a Civil War buff, a ferroequinologist and part-time folk singer. But, DeFeo has made a habit of mixing business and fun. In 2002, he launched Railfanning.org, one of the most popular websites dedicated to the hobby of train-watching. DeFeo is also editor of Sightseers’ Delight, a travel site.