Trouble on the Railroad

Written by Gary Bullock

Since its inception in the 1870’s Falkner was known as a rough place with some rough characters. People would come from far off to watch the fights at one of the two saloons that were in Falkner, as they were legendary. Early in the 1900’s the railroad was having trouble with ruffians robbing, fighting, and causing troubles on the train ride from Middleton, Tennessee to Ripley, Mississippi. Frank Rogers, who was the brother to Falkner postmaster Ellis Rogers, was the Sheriff of Tippah County and decided he must do something to stop this mayhem from happening. So, he came up with a plan. He went to Falkner and deputized some of the roughest men in the town to ride the train from Middleton to Ripley. As a result, the troubles ceased immediately. Some would say that he hired some of the people who were doing the mischief to stop the mischief, but either way it ended. This is just one of the many interesting stories from our town’s history.