Tennessee Central Railway Museum offered its Train Robbery Trip on Saturday. Riders enjoyed a train robbery and a shoot-out in Watertown’s Court Square.
“I never thought I would enjoy being robbed on a train but I did,” said Lorna Kester, a Warren County resident who went on the excursion. “It was my first train ride and my first Wild West robbery. I will go again.”
Numerous trips with various themes and destinations are offered every year. Saturday’s event traveled from Donelson in Nashville at 9 a.m. to Watertown, a 90-mile round trip that took approximately five-and-a-half hours.
The train robbery took place just before entering Watertown. Desperados dressed in Wild West attire boarded the train and asked for “donations” from the passengers.
“This is a hold up,” said one robber as he brandished a shotgun. “There are some rich folks on this train. We don’t want much, just all your money.”
The robbers showed they had a kinder side as they posed for pictures. All the “loot” donated will go into a scholarship fund established for Watertown students in memory of Sue Talley. Talley was a much loved and respected member of the town who lost a battle with cancer. The museum provides two scholarships a year.
Passengers were then given two hours to explore the town, enjoy lunch and experience a Wild West shoot-out between the robbers and Marshal Montana, who was successful in defending the town. Prior to re-boarding the train, actors entertained the crowd with trick shots and a comedy skit.
The Tennessee Central Railway Museum is an all-volunteer, nonprofit corporation that began in early 1989 as an effort to operate excursion trains in Middle Tennessee. The museum’s mission is to preserve, restore, interpret and operate historic railroad equipment for the education of the general public about America’s railroads.
Along with a train robbery, excursions themes throughout 2014 include Del Monaco Winery, Murder Mystery, Day Out With Thomas the Tank Engine, Fall Mile-Long Yard Sale, Super Fall Foliage, and a North Pole Express excursion with Santa in November and December.
For more information about Tennessee Central Railway Museum’s trips, dates and pricing, visit www.tcry.org.