Former Erwin resident author of books on famous Clinchfield engine

His fascination in trains came at an early age — as it does for most boys, but it took Mark A. Stevens nearly 40 years to make it into a career highlight. A former Erwin resident and once publisher of The Erwin Record from 1997 until 2011, Stevens is the author of several books, including two about the Clinchfield No. 1, a steam engine famously saved from obscurity in 1968 to become a sensation as a brilliant marketing tool for the Erwin-based Clinchfield Railroad. The fascination with trains and railroads has held long sway with Stevens, who's family has lived in the Limestone Cove area of Unicoi County for several generations. "The first birthday I can remember was a train-themed party," he recalled in an interview from his Murrells Inlet, South Carolina, home, "because I really liked trains. I thought I'd grow up to be an engineer, but I, of course, had no concept of what it meant to be an engineer. I just knew I loved trains. I loved to watch the sitcom "Petticoat Junction," because it had the train pulled by a steam engine called the Cannonball. The theme song started with the steam engine's whistle and the train in full view. "I can recite the lyrics even today: "Come ride the little train that is rolling down the tracks to the junction … Petticoat Junction!" Stevens' first book was titled "Unicoi County: Then & Now," which featured photos from the past matched with current photos — "current" when the book was published in 2008. It is now in its second printing and was a top seller for Arcadia Publishing. The book features a photo of the Clinchfield No. 1 crossing Second Street in Erwin. That led him to want to learn more about the steam engine. It was story a few years later than cemented that fascination. "I wrote an article about some local folks hoping to bring the steam engine 'home' to Erwin from the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore," Stevens recalled. "One of the people I interviewed was Alf Peoples, an engineer with CSX. Alf's first job at 18 years old was a carman for the Clinchfield's excursions pulled by the No. 1." They became good friends. "One day out of the blue, I said to Alf, "You know, we ought to write a book about the No. 1," and he took me seriously and two years later, we had a pictorial history about the No. 1 published," Stevens said. "And then a couple of years later, The History Press in Charleston, South Carolina, published our written history book about the No. 1. We loved telling the history about the little engine, and it was quite complex and involved so many people. It was an American success story, and those books are highlights in my life." The Clinchfield No. 1 pulled excursions for nearly 11 years and was beloved by people all over America," Stevens explained. "It became very famous and was written about in The New York Times, the Chicago Tribune and more. Interestingly, the month it was being rebuilt in 1968 was the year I was born." Stevens' books, which he wrote with Peoples, include "The One & Only: A Pictorial History of the Clinchfield No. 1," (Star Publishing, 2013); "The Clinchfield No. 1: Tennessee's Legendary Steam Engine," (The History Press, 2014); and "The One & Only: A Pictorial History of the Clinchfield No. 1 Special Anniversary Edition," (MAS Communications, 2018). The Clinchfield books presented a interesting challenge to write. "When we started, it had been 33 years since the Clinchfield No. 1 had left Erwin for its home at the B&O museum," Stevens said. "It had been nearly 44 years since she was rebuilt by Clinchfield Railroaders, so some of the men we needed to talk to, to get photographs from, to get important details from, were elderly or had passed on." He added, "Even some of the people who helped us with the first book passed away before it was ever published. I've always said, if we hadn't done the two books — the pictorial and then the history — when we did that it may not have been possible, or, at least, with the same precision. A lot of the knowledge and history passed on with these wonderful men who helped bring the Clinchfield No. 1 back to life in 1968." Stevens praised the Archives of Appalachia at East Tennessee State University, which houses a huge amount of papers and documents about the No.1. "It was invaluable," he said. "I spent several days there doing research. It was a lot of fun and very informative." Stevens explained why, in his own estimation, railroads like the Clinchfield continue to fascinate. "Railroads are essential to the American story – connecting east and west, industry and local business, travel and commerce," he said. "The Clinchfield lives on because so many people, so many families in Unicoi County owe their success to it. The railroad built Erwin. Had it not been for the Clinchfield, Erwin wouldn't really exist as it does today. Southern Potteries would never have existed. The Clinchfield Railroad and the town of Erwin are linked forever." He may take another dive into writing more about the Clinchfield. "I have another one that involves the No. 1 and some other Clinchfield equipment that I'd like to do. We will see," he said. "And I would love to do a children's book about the No. 1. And there are some exciting things about the No. 1 in the works that I can't really talk about right now, but, if it happens, it will be amazing." Although no longer working in journalism, he has continued to write. "I've written some fiction, which I had never tried before," Stevens said. "I have a small publishing company that publishes books by Appalachian and Southern writers: a very successful Kentucky poet, Clem Stambaugh, a South Carolina novelist, Robert Lamb, and others. I'm very proud of that, and I have some more books tied to Erwin coming soon." He said that he has toyed with writing a book about his 13 years at The Erwin Record. "I think that would be enlightening," Stevens said. "I loved my time at The Erwin Record. I always tell people I never worked as hard as I did at the Record, but I've never loved a job more than that one. And I worked with so many wonderful, talented people, and I'm still friends with so many people in Unicoi County, which is where my great-grandparents, grandparents and mother were born, so it will always hold a special place in my heart." After leaving Erwin, he worked at other newspapers in Tennessee, Louisiana and South Carolina, but he left the newspaper business behind in 2017. He's now the director of tourism development for the Georgetown County Chamber of Commerce, where he promotes the coastal communities of South Carolina's Hammock Coast: Pawleys Island, Litchfield Beach, Garden City and Murrells Inlet. "My wife, Amy, and I lived at the beach in Pawleys Island when we first moved here in 2014, but we moved up the coast a bit to Murrells Inlet five years ago," Stevens said. "This area just feels like home, and we both love it here. We get back to Tennessee to see our families as much as we can and always at Christmas, of course." "The Clinchfield No. 1: Tennessee's Legendary Steam Engine" is available through Amazon or any major retailers, and signed copies of "The One & Only: A Pictorial History of the Clinchfield No. 1" are available from the author by calling (423) 737-6139 or emailing him at MASCommunicationsLLC@gmail.com.