Scalded to Death by the Steam: Authentic Stories of Railroad Disasters and the Ballads That Were Written about Them
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.97 (522 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 0945575017 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 224 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 0000-00-00 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
Book by Lyle, Katie Letcher
"An intriguing integration of railroad history and folksongs." according to WILLIAM H FULLER. Who was Casey Jones? How did he really die? How did a child bring death to Engineer Ben Dewberry? Of all railroad disasters, why did the "Wreck of the Old 97" become so well known in song?Lyle spins us stories of the real histories behind two dozen American railroad disasters that spawned folksongs that will not themselves die, though death figures promin. A Customer said Interesting, but incomplete!. My father, Fred J. Lewey has been credited with writing the original words to "Wreck of the Old 97", by Robert Gordon's papers, accepted and held by the Library of Congress, where there is a cylinder recording of him singing the song. That recording was used in Supreme Court, in the George trial about the composer. Also, Reader's Digest in their "American. Folk songs about train wrecks are put in perspective. A Customer Ms. Lyle shows a historian's perspicaciousness in her investigation of "Wreck of the Old '97" and other train wreck songs. She finds people who were at the wrecks and digs up news accounts of the wrecks--not all wrecks, just the ones with songs about them. Her comparisons of the myths in the songs and the history itself make a wonder read.