Seymour, Ind., is the next stop for OOIDA’s tour trailer

The next stop for OOIDA’s tour trailer is in Seymour, Ind.

Seymour is at the intersection of U.S. Highway 50 and I-65 in southern Indiana. It is at Exit 50 from I-65.

The Spirit of the America Trucker is scheduled to be at the Seymour TA Travel Center on March 24-26.

The Seymour TA has 184 truck parking spots. There is a Made to Go store for grab and go food, in case social distancing is on your mind. On the other side of I-65 from the Seymour TA is a Walmart distribution center.

The big issue on everyone’s mind has been the nation’s response to COVID-19, including professional truck drivers checking in at The Spirit. OOIDA has been advocating for truck drivers affected by the viral outbreak, asking President Donald Trump for help and telling restaurant owners that drivers need somewhere to eat. OOIDA also has been sending its members daily updates.

OOIDA and Land Line Media staff have been conscientious compiling the latest updates from federal and state governments on the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak.

Get the latest updates at The Spirit truck, and give Jon Osburn, skipper of The Spirit, any head’s up info on issues affecting truck drivers. He will make sure OOIDA and Land Line Media staff hear about it.

However quiet Seymour may seem today, its early years were rowdy and rambunctious. As it happens, Seymour is the site of the first peacetime train robbery.

The holdup was on Oct. 6, 1866, and the crime was committed by the Reno Gang, made up mostly of brothers. They waged three more train robberies and made national headlines. A vigilante mob apprehended the Reno brothers in 1868, hung them, and buried them just west of Seymour, where an unincorporated area on U.S. 50 is still known as Hangman’s Crossing. Their graves are in Seymour’s City Cemetery.

Quiet Seymour also is known for something more contemporary. When musician John Mellencamp sings “I was born in a small town,” he meant Seymour. It is his hometown.

Stop by and introduce yourself

If you pull in somewhere and see The Spirit tour truck, stop by and say hello to Jon. He enjoys visiting about the Association’s activities and current issues. You can join or renew your OOIDA membership for $10 off the regular price there. Also, you can get vouchers for flu, shingles and pneumonia vaccines from Jon.

After Seymour, Jon and The Spirit begin a three-stop tour of Ohio, starting in Jeffersonville. Here is the schedule.