By Meredith Biesinger, Magnolia Tribune
Water Valley has gotten a lot of attention over the past several years for its downtown revival, local shops, restaurants, art, and historic buildings. It’s become the kind of place where you can spend an afternoon wandering around and always find something
But to understand Water Valley, you have to know what was here long before all of that.
For generations, this was a railroad town.
You can still see that part of its history at the Water Valley Casey Jones Railroad Museum, located at 105 Railroad Street in the town’s old Illinois Central depot. And between the depot, a caboose, an old banana car, and one very famous railroad engineer, there’s quite a story waiting there.
That engineer, of course, was John Luther “Casey” Jones.
Born in Kentucky in 1863, Jones eventually worked for the Illinois Central Railroad and spent part of his career running trains between Jackson, Tennessee, and Water Valley. He was promoted to engineer in 1891 and became known for a distinctive train whistle that people living along his route reportedly recognized when they heard it coming.
His connection to Mississippi would ultimately make him famous.
On April 30, ...