Merci Train

Tucked behind the Old Capitol Museum and the former GM&O Train Depot in Downtown Jackson, this gray boxcar is a Mississippi Department of Archives and History attraction and a resting stop along the Mississippi Museum Trail. MDAH recently completed a restoration that returns the boxcar to its post-World War II design, including a fresh coat of paint, structural reinforcement and replica plaques.

The story begins in 1947. As Europe recovered from the war, Washington Post columnist Drew Pearson launched a grassroots effort to support rehabilitation in France. Over $40 million worth of supplies was collected from across the United States, eventually filling more than 700 railroad cars. Known as the American Friendship Train, the boxcars arrived in Europe in December 1947.

France answered with a train of its own. The French Merci Train’s boxcars were decorated with placards of the coats of arms of all the provinces of France and filled with personal donations from across the country. Each of the 48 states received a car, plus one shared between Washington, D.C., and Hawaii.

After first stopping in Meridian, Mississippi’s boxcar arrived in Jackson on February 12, 1949. Its contents were displayed at the farmers market and then divided among various organizations. MDAH received 40 objects from the Merci Train, which remain in its permanent collection today.

Source: MDAH