McComb railroad museum plaque stolen

Trains Magazine General Discussion
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McComb railroad museum plaque stolen

Last Update: 1/8/2007 3:57:46 PM

McCOMB, Miss. (AP) - A bronze plaque that contained a historic route map of the Illinois Central Railroad has been stolen from the McComb City Railroad Depot Museum and officials are hoping they get it back.

The theft was discovered on Dec. 28. Police have asked the public for help in finding it.

“It’s a piece of the city’s history,” said museum board member Bob Bellipanni.

Bellipanni’s grandfather, Jake Bellipanni Sr., served as a conductor for the rail system.

Affixed to a piece of granite that weighs about 450 pounds, the plaque is 10-1/4 inches in diameter and was given to McComb in 1951.

“It looks like they had a crowbar and popped it out of the rock,” Bellipanni said.

A circular plaque that documented the 100th anniversary of the railroad also was mounted to the granite. It was not damaged.

“It doesn’t appear that they messed with the other side at all. It really (doesn’t) make sense,” Bellipanni said.

When the city initially received the monument, Bellipanni said they didn’t have a place to put it because of its size. So officials decided to display it near McComb High School. About two years ago, the monument was moved to the railroad museum and placed by the train display.

Since the theft, the monument has been moved again. Now it’s housed inside the depot, which is locked at night.

Bellipanni said the depot has been the target of vandalism in the past, but nothing of this magnitude. He said vandals have previously spray-painted the engine and boxcar. And last year, windows were smashed out of the train wrecker.

“I have no idea what was on their minds,” Bellipanni

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[:(!] That’s just sad. People like that need to find something better to do.[:(!]

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Unfortunately, this is not an isolated example of senseless destruction. This week, out in Sioux City Iowa, vandals have destroyed $8,000.00 worth of artifacts in the Hstoric Railroad District and on the West Coast, in Medford Oregon, someone has gone to a great deal of effort to pull a two hundred pound bell off a steam locomotive long displayed in that city…sad but true.

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If it be still appropriate, please forgive me for dredging up this old news item post regarding the 1951 ICRR plaque, stolen in December 2006 from its installation at the McComb (City) Railroad Depot Museum. Has there been any recovery, or other news since, of this plaque? Thanks in advance for any information.

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…And this time the ‘gold trophey’ for grave robbing goes to…Travelingengineer, for digging up a 3 year old thread [swg].

Sorry, I couldn’t resist…[8D]

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Imay be mistaken, but at about the same time frame, give or take a little. The Mississippi State Historical Society provided marker at Vaughan, Miss ( site of the Apr.30,1900 wreck of the Fast Mail killed J.L. Casey Jones). Someone had taken that marker as well. These markers are not a small plaque. They are cast in a Bronz-like alloy and weight a couple of hundred pounds, not to mention afixed to a large metal post which is sunk into a concreted hole.

In 2002 the State Park at Vaughn (commemorating the 4/30/1900 wreck, and the post office/museum were closed by the State for lack of funds and that collection was moved to the new Casey Jones Museum at the former IC RR division point of Water Valley, Ms…

linked here: http://www.watervalley.net/users/caseyjones/home.htm

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For those that care (perhaps very few), I have just learned from an officer of the McComb Railroad Museum that:

“the [original McComb] route medallion was never recovered but we got a replacement from a town that received the same marker and was not using it.”

How sad it is (these days) that jerks are ripping off metal wherever found in public (monuments, tombstone embellishments, figurines, electrical transmission wires, cross-walk button boxes, anything anywhere), so as to redeem for cash. One might assume that this was what was allegedly done at both McComb MS and Vaughn MS.