Great Locomotive Chase participant Franklin Alexander Crawford later kept history alive at the Cyclorama

Crawford had a long railroad career that showed how dangerous railroad work was

A postcard of the Cylorama. (Courtesy of Railfanning.org)

Franklin Alexander “Van” Crawford is one of the lesser-known participants in the Great Locomotive Chase, even if his role was minor.

After the Raiders stole the General locomotive at Big Shanty, Lem Kendrick rode toward Marietta to telegraph E.B. Walker in Atlanta. Walker ordered the freight train in Marietta, pulled by the Pennsylvania locomotive, to head north.

Kendrick connected with the locomotive and its crew — engineer Richard Harper and Crawford, its conductor. Accounts suggest they made it to Big Shanty, where they would take on soldiers for a potential fight and possibly made it to Dalton.

Regardless of how far they made it, their pursuit did not impact the chase. While his participation in the Great Locomotive Chase is barely noted in history, his career with the railroad was still notable and provides insight into the people who shaped the Western & Atlantic and Atlanta’s early history.