This image is a famous Ed Westcott photo of the July 6, 1944 Troop Train Wreck at High Cliff near Jellico. This is one of the stories that will be discussed.
Author Allen R. Coggins will discuss Tennessee tragedies in the last 250 years during a July 12 Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association meeting. The public is invited, and the meeting begins at 7 p.m. at the Midtown Community Center.
Coggins is the author of Place Names of the Smokies and has recently published Tennessee Tragedies: Grim Reapings of Our Past, which is the first compilation of historical disasters for any state, according to a press release.
His presentation will include a historical overview of some of the most significant tragedies over the last two and a half centuries and takes a closer look at some of the more compelling stories, the release said.
Coggins recently received an “Award of Research Excellence” from the East Tennessee Historical Society.
