KENNESAW, Ga. — City officials here are apparently hoping one of the historic locomotives made famous during a daring Civil War event is relocated to Kennesaw.
The Texas locomotive has been on display in Grant Park in Atlanta since 1911 and the Cyclorama since 1927. But, Kennesaw officials want the state, which owns the steamer, to move it to the Southern Museum of Civil War & Locomotive History in downtown Kennesaw.
The museum is already home to the General locomotive, which Union spies stole on April 12, 1862, in an episode remembered as the Great Locomotive Chase. The General has been on display at the museum since 1972.
“It just makes all kinds of sense in the world to be housed somewhere in Cobb. This is where the historical event actually took place, and I know that it would be well cared for by that museum for sure,” the Marietta Daily Journal quoted state Rep. Earl Ehrhart as saying.
The Texas and the Cyclorama, a large circular painting depicting the Battle of Atlanta, are moving to the Atlanta History Center in the Buckhead community. The former Cyclorama building will be used as part of a Zoo Atlanta expansion.
“A lot of train enthusiasts come through the museum, and we’ve had a few train-centered events that have been well-attended,” the newspaper quoted Kennesaw Mayor Mark Mathews as saying. “We definitely would like it in Kennesaw. It sure doesn’t belong in Buckhead.”
