ALL ABOARD! NO. 5 PASSENGER STEAM TRAIN DELIVERS ENTERTAINMENT

JACKSON -- When Mary Strong listens to the familiar hiss of steam, the clickety-clack of wheels and the shrill blast of a train whistle, she feels like she's sampled another slice of heaven.

Oh, one other sound makes her heart expand and her ears strain for more of the same : The chatter generated by a packed train during any given weekend run of robberies, murder mysteries, magic acts and the best of Bluegrass.

The hiss signals the St. Louis Iron Mountain and Southern Railway steam-engine train is just around the bend or perhaps on its way to another historic city.

The clickety-clack of the wheels can be heard as the train travels to the next destination, a sign that history is once again on the move. The whistle arrests the attention of the passengers as Engine No. 5 thunders its way to the next scheduled southeast Missouri town.

Strong's imagination brought all of those sounds alive when she first caught a glimpse of the Iron Mountain and Southern Railway steam engine in 1988. "When my husband and I first moved here we drove through Jackson and I saw the train sitting there," said Strong, who is the director of the St. Louis Iron Mountain and Southern Railway. "I've always been fascinated by trains," she said. "When I saw that train sitting there, I knew I would be back for another visit."

In 1989 Strong answered a newspaper ad for the job she now holds. "Once I realized I would be working with this steam-engine train, I really got excited," said Strong, whose husband is a roadmaster for Burlington Northern Railroad working on tracks from St. Louis to Hayti. "I think it was fate that I ended up in a city that had a passenger steam train."

Her appreciation for trains can be traced to her father, who fed her fascination for steam engines and the history of the railroad with stories and literature. "My father loved trains and spoke of them during war time," she said. "Once he got me started, I seemed to want to know more and more about them.

"There are so few of these steam engines left," said Strong. "It's an honor to help preserve something that should be around so others can get a glimpse of history."

Strong has scheduled a busy Memorial Day Weekend on the St. Louis Iron Mountain and Southern Railway. On Saturday evening, May 28, a murder mystery will pique the curiosity of the 120 passengers, who will be divided into groups of four. Clues will be dropped by actors and actresses as the passengers go about the task of solving the mystery within a five-hour time frame. During the day there will be a train robbery.

Among the stops during the murder mystery trip will be Woodard's Cafe in Delta, which features a buffet. The murder mystery is $34.50 per person.

"We offer the murder mystery once a month," said Strong. "It's put on by a company called "Murders To Go" and is part of a bed and breakfast in Ste. Genevieve."

Rob Beckerman has run the murder mystery entertainment since its inception at the Steiger House in Ste. Genevieve seven years ago. "We bring six actors to play the suspects," said Beckerman. "Everybody receives background information and a handwritten clue at the bottom of the sheet of paper. They can talk to other passengers to get other clues and at some point as a group may question the suspects."

This will mark the 44th production of "Murders To Go" on the St. Louis Iron Mountain and Southern Railway. "We have done 470 mysteries at the bed and breakfast so far," said Beckerman. "We can usually repeat them each month. But it's a little trickier on the train because they want a new show each month. Sometimes we have a theme to work with and that makes it even tougher, but it's all a lot of fun because the people on the train seem to enjoy it so much."

Strong attends various conventions to produce entertainment ideas each season. "A lot of the people who help out with the entertainment or work on the railroad are volunteers," said Strong. "It's really the only way we can afford to keep it going."

The weekend of June 11-12 will feature Darren's Magic Express. There will be a special offered on Father's Day weekend, June 18-19, with dads riding for half price with another paying passenger.

The weekend of June 25-26 will feature The Coyote Creek Bluegrass Band, which will perform during daytime trips.

The weekend of July 9-10 will bring Darren's Magic Express back. Train robberies will be the order of the day during the weekend of Jyly 16-17. A Bonnie and Clyde holdup will take place during the weekend of Aug. 6-7.

A Victorian weekened, in which passengers will be treated to Victorian style tea and cookies, will take place at 6 p.m. Sept. 10. There will also be a Victorian fashion show and a Civil War re-enactment Oct. 22-23.

When the weather is too cool for the steam-powered train, the St. Louis Iron Mountain and Southern Railway switches to Locomotive No. 911 to handle the winter trips.

"No matter which train is in operation, I love to hear them and see them at work with children, their parents and grandparents having a good time," said Strong.