The Legend of the CNO&TP Railroad

[Verse] Beneath the blaze of a Southern sun, where the red clay dust would rise, There roared a mighty iron horse, chasing Appalachian skies. From Cincinnati's bustling yards to Chattanooga's rolling rail, The CNO&TP steamed on, with a whistle and a tale. [Verse 2] Old Jim would stoke that firebox, shoveling coal with grit, His hands were tough as leather, but his heart was soft as it. With each mile that thundered past, he'd hum a lonesome tune, The rhythm of the wheel and track, under the Southern moon. [Chorus] Oh, the legend of the CNO&TP, through valleys wild and free, It carried dreams from town to town, as far as eyes could see. Steaming past the kudzu vines, down by the river bend, It wrote its tale in iron and steel, on which time it did depend. [Verse 3] In small-town depots, women waved with hopes of letters home, Men would tip their hats and dream of places they would roam. Children chased the fading smoke, as the train roared down the line, Imagining a world so vast, just past the county sign. [Bridge] But progress came a-knocking, with its diesel brigades strong, The steam days waned to history, but the legacy lived on. Ghost tracks of yesteryears, etched in the Tennessee clay, Remind us of the boiling steam, from a long-forgotten day. [Verse 4] The echoes of the whistle still linger in the night, A haunting, wistful melody, 'neath the velvet sky so bright. The iron horse now rests its bones, in a museum far away, But the spirit of those brave old days, forever here shall stay.