All aboard to Chattanooga, Tenn., to embark on a ride into yesterday.
If you think of Chattanooga, Tenn., as simply the “Choo Choo City,” well, you're on the right track. Although Chattanooga projects itself today as a family-friendly destination and nature lover's paradise, the city still embraces its railroading heritage. In fact, when you visit, you'll discover that much of Chattanooga's past is rooted in the rails — and its historical attractions extend far beyond the famed Track 29.
Chattanooga's railroad age actually began almost a century before Glenn Miller popularized the city's namesake song. A train owned by the Western & Atlantic line was the first to chug into Chattanooga, in 1849. Its arrival ushered in the growing commercial and passenger traffic that would turn this young town into the “Gateway to the South” — so called because nearly all trains bound for Southern states passed through Chattanooga. In 1880, the city welcomed the first passenger train to provide nonstop service to the area. A reporter dubbed it the “Chattanooga choo-choo,” and the nickname stuck.
The depot that inspired the jazz song opened in 1909. Terminal Station, built by Southern Railway at the south end of town, quickly became a hub for passenger traffic. Its architecture — especially the dramatic 85-foot dome over the concourse — reflected the Victorian elegance associated with railroading's golden age. At its height, Terminal Station hosted 50 passenger trains daily; three US presidents (Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin Roosevelt) crossed its platforms. The depot — and city — was still a hotbed of train travel when lyricist Mack Gordon paired the choo-choo nickname with Harold Warren's melody. The Glenn Miller Orchestra's 1942 rendition of “Chattanooga Choo Choo” made the Tennessee town famous.