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Whitwell, Tennessee: Holocaust Box Car with 11 Million Paper Clips (Closed)

Packed into this Nazi box car are 11 million paper clips, each representing a World War II casualty. A sincere project by Tennessee school children.

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Box car from a Holocaust train.

Holocaust Box Car with 11 Million Paper Clips

This stop on our trip at the Holocaust Train Car was interesting. One thing to note about this attraction. It is under lock and key. If you visit during the school year and during school hours, you can get an audio tour from the office. If you are there after school hours or during the summer, you need to go to the police station to pick up a key.

[Alecia Johnson, 07/19/2007]
Holocaust Rail Car and 11 Million Paper Clips

Led by two faculty members, in 1998 Whitwell Middle School students started collecting paper clips to represent the six million Jews who were murdered in the Holocaust. They eventually accumulated over 29 million paper clips donated from companies and individuals. An extremely rare, original railroad cattle car that transported victims to the camps was procured from Germany and set up in Whitewell.

Half of the car was filled with eleven million paper clips, now representing 11 million WWII casualties. The Children's Holocaust Memorial Rail Car was dedicated in 2001, and "Paper Clips," a documentary film about the project, aired on HBO in 2005.

[Roadsideamerica.com Team, 11/25/2005]

Holocaust Box Car with 11 Million Paper Clips

Whitwell Middle School

Address:
1 Butterfly Lane, Whitwell, TN
Directions:
At Whitwell Middle School. I-24 exit 155. Drive north on Hwy 28 for about 12 miles. Just before you get to town, turn left into Whitwell High School. Drive around the high school, turn left, then drive around Whitwell Middle School. The box car is next to the school's front door. You can access the car after school hours by picking up a key at Castle's Grocery, in town at 13563 TN-28.
Hours:
Normally school hrs, closed 2024 during Gaza/Israel mess. (Call to verify)
Phone:
423-658-5635
Status:
Closed
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In the region:
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