You've no doubt heard the song "Chattanooga Choo Choo"--the catchy one with the uptempo, swing rhythm and horn solos that sound like an approaching train. Written by Mack Gordon and composed by Harry Warren, it was made an international pop sensation by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra as a big band number featured in the 1941 film, "Sun Valley Serenade." The tune became the number-one song in America on December 7, 1941--the same day Japanese forces attacked Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Hawaii. It was the first song to receive a gold record, presented by RCA Victor in 1942, for sales of 1.2 million copies, and has been covered by artists as diverse as the Andrews Sisters, Cab Calloway, Carmen Miranda, Ray Charles, Barry Manilow, Herb Alpert, John Denver and even the Muppets.

In the song, the Chattanooga Choo Choo, a coal-powered steam locomotive, makes its journey along the Tennessee Line from New York City's Pennsylvania Station on Track 29 through Baltimore and North Carolina, finally arriving at its destination in Chattanooga. Chattanooga's historic train station served as the city's Terminal Station, owned and operated by the Southern Railway, since its construction in 1906; after the international success of the catchy tune, Chattanooga's importance as a southeastern transportation hub was cemented. Chattanooga forever holds a place in American history as the embodiment of the glamorous golden age of early 20th century American train travel.

However, after the withdrawal of passenger rail service in the early 1970s, Chattanooga Station was on course for obsolescence and demolition. Fortunately, it was saved from the wrecking ball in 1973, when local businessmen invested $4 million in turning the location into a unique vacation complex. In 1974 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is considered one of the city's first historic preservation projects.

The city still pays homage to this musical and cultural historic site; today the Chattanooga Choo Choo thrives as a 30-acre resort complex, complete with hotel, full-service restaurants, numerous bars, music venues, a comedy club, a distillery, historic railway exhibits, and various retail outlets.