Today it's an idilic excursion but the tracks we now ride upon came at a very high price.
As many railroads in this country, they were built during a time in history where slavery had been abolished. But the men who labored on these tracks were anything but free and ultimately the victims of a system that made sure it stayed that way. In this episode we explore the incredibly tragic Cowee Tunnel Disaster and discuss the brokenness of the times.
The charity for this show is the Jackson County NAACP which has worked hard to ensure these stories are told and have been working towards getting a historical marker for this tragedy. You can learn more about them at: http://jacksonncnaacp.org/
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Our sources for this episode are:
https://www.gsmr.com/events/polar-express/
https://americansall.org/legacy-story-group/civil-war-black-codes-summary-pre-jim-crow-laws
https://www.facebook.com/GaryCardenStoryteller