The history of railroading is a tale of love and tragedy.
While some railroad workers, like Engineer Tom Hamby, were fortunate to walk away from mishaps, 19th-century railroading was incredibly dangerous, and it remains potentially dangerous today. Examining railroad history reveals the inherent dangers of the industry.
It’s a story of both human ingenuity and the ever-present risk of tragedy.
Before you copy and paste this information to your website, please keep in mind this research took a lot of effort. Appreciate it. Learn from it. But do not plagiarize it. Yes, if you think we might be talking to you, we are.
Todd DeFeo loves to travel anywhere, anytime, taking pictures and notes. An award-winning reporter, Todd revels in the experience and the fact that every place has a story to tell. He is owner of The DeFeo Groupe and also edits Express Telegraph and The Travel Trolley.
Railroads transformed travel and commerce, shrinking a 20-hour stagecoach journey into a quick train ride. The impact? Goods moved faster, markets expanded, and distances vanished. An economic boom followed as the world became a smaller place.
I filmed a quick video reflecting on passing through the 1928 tunnel on the Western & Atlantic Railroad during the “first-ever immersive reenactment of the Great Locomotive Chase” from Kennesaw, Georgia, to Ringgold, Georgia.
