Jonathan Luther "Casey" Jones (March 14, 1863 - April 30, 1900) from Jackson, Tennessee, was an American railroader who worked for the Illinois Central Railroad (IC). He was killed on April 30, 1900, when his train collided with a stalled freight train near Vaughan, Mississippi. His dramatic death while trying to stop his train and save the lives of his passengers made him a hero; he was immortalized in a popular ballad sung by his friend Wallace Saunders, an African-American engine wiper for the IC. As a boy, he lived near Cayce, Kentucky, where he acquired the nickname of "Cayce", which he chose to spell as "Casey".
Illinois Central Railroad report on accident
A conductor's report filed five hours after the accident stated, "Engineer on No.1 failed to answer flagman who was out proper distance. It is supposed he did not see the flag." This was the position the IC held in its official reports.  The final IC accident report was released on July 13, 1900, by A.S. Sullivan, the General Superintendent of IC. It stated that "Engineer Jones was solely responsible having disregarded the signals given by Flagman Newberry." John M. Newberry was the flagman on the southbound No. 83 that Jones hit. According to the report, he had gone out a distance of 3,000 feet (910 m), where he had placed warning torpedoes on the rail. He continued north a further distance of 500 to 800 feet (150 to 240 m), where he stood and gave signals to Jones' train No.1. Historians and the press had questions about the official findings.  In the report Fireman Sim Webb states that he heard the torpedo explode, then went to the gangway on the engineer's side and saw the flagman with the red and white lights standing alongside the tracks. Going to the fireman's side, he saw the markers of the caboose of No. 83 and yelled to Jones. But it would have been impossible for him to have seen the flagman if the flagman had been positioned 500-800 feet (150-240 m) before the torpedoes as the report says he was. In any event, some railroad historians have disputed the official account over the years, finding it difficult if not impossible to believe that an engineer of Jones' experience would have ignored a flagman and fusees (flares) and torpedoes exploded on the rail to alert him to danger.  Contrary to what the report claimed, shortly after the accident and until his death Webb maintained, "We saw no flagman or fusees, we heard no torpedoes. Without any warning we plowed into that caboose."

Q: What happened to cause the accident?
A: "Engineer on No.1 failed to answer flagman who was out proper distance. It is supposed he did not see the flag.
Who was involved in the accident?
Engineer Jones
Engineer Jones