Wreck of the Old 97

(Wikipedia) - The "Old 97", a Southern Railway train officially known as the Fast Mail, was en route from Monroe, Virginia to Spencer, North Carolina when it left the track at Stillhouse Trestle near Danville, Virginia on September 27, 1903.

... The wreck of the Old 97 served as inspiration for balladeers, the most famous being the ballad first recorded commercially by Virginia musicians G. B. Grayson and Henry Whitter. Vernon Dalhart's version was released in 1924 (Victor Record no. 19427), sometimes cited as the first million-selling country music release in the American record industry. Since then, "Wreck of the Old 97" has been recorded by numerous artists, including David Holt, Flatt and Scruggs, Woody Guthrie, Johnny Cash, Hank Williams III, Patrick Sky, Nine Pound Hammer, Boxcar Willie, The Seekers, Bert Southwood, and Hank Snow. The Texas alt-country band Old 97's took their name from this song. Continued