I've looked over the SuperSearch results for Casey Jones, and frankly I can't figure out where this might fit. I didn't find a previous citation of this "bit" of information – which I stumbled across purely by accident.

I'm sure it doesn't add any new information, but sometimes having a specific and credible(?) "citation" for information that's well known can also come in handy.

In searching (briefly) for a place to put it, I found a couple of references to "first recordings" in the 1950s. The text below does indicate a "first author" who was a contemporary of Casey, who's work was "polished" by an unnamed songwriter, at an unstated time.

"CASEY JONES: LEGENDARY BLE MEMBER

"A light began to shine through the clouds surrounding the CB&Q strike in the form of a brave engineer named John Luther "Casey" Jones. A member of BLE Division 99 in Water Valley, Miss., Casey Jones was one of the most alert and able engineers working out of the Memphis terminal of the Illinois Central Railroad.

"Immortalized in song, Locomotive Engineer John Luther "Casey" Jones belonged to BLE Division 99 in Water Valley, Miss. Brother Jones sacrificed his life on April 30, 1900 to save the lives of his passengers.

"His widow received proceeds from two $1,500 policies with the BLE's Locomotive Engineers Mutual Life & Accident Insurance Association.

"Piloting the "Cannonball Express" on April 30, 1900, Brother Jones stayed at the throttle and sacrificed his live (sic) in order to save his passengers as his train plowed into a stalled freight near Vaughan, Miss. Almost immediately after the accident, stories began to spring up throughout the country about the "brave engineer" who died at the throttle to save his passengers.

"His sacrifice reached legendary proportions when his roundhouse friend Wallace Saunders, an engine wiper, strung together "The Ballad of Casey Jones." The ballad was picked up by a professional songwriter who polished the lyrics and gave the world one of its all-time hit songs.

"In doing so, BLE member Casey Jones became the nation's eternal symbol of the bravery and dedication of locomotive engineers."


The above is part of a History of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers linked from the BLE Home Page.

Apologies if this is old stuff, and it is probably appropriate to put it in a more suitable place if it's worth keeping.

John