A memorial event for Baylor University's "Immortal Ten" is being held on Sunday in Round Rock.
"The tradition of the Immortal Ten encourages people to make the most of their lives, and it still does honor them as individuals and who they were, what they meant to Baylor and the city of Waco and the state of Texas," Todd Copeland, author of "The Immortal Ten," said.
Jan 22nd 2017 marks the 90th anniversary of the tragic death of ten Baylor men who were killed after their bus was hit by a train. The men's basketball team along with yell leaders and reporters were headed to Austin for a game.
Tomorrow, to honor the anniversary, the city of Round Rock will dedicate a bridge over the train tracks where the young men died in their honor.
"They're not just names on a plaque. These were young men, they were family members, they were members of a university," Alan McGraw, the Mayor of Round Rock, said.
Mayor McGraw said it was about time the city of Round Rock properly recognized the Immortal Ten.
"For so long, the historical character that we've memorialized here was a notorious bank robber and murderer named Sam Bass. There's even a street named after him. And so, there's something wrong about that being who we memorialize, and we haven't done proper to the Immortal Ten. And I think this kind of fixes that," Mayor McGraw added.
The bridge will now be known as the Immortal Bridge and is painted green and gold. Ten lamp posts line the bridge... each holding a photo and name of a young man who lost his life that day.
Distance relatives of the Immortal Ten and the survivors have traveled from all over to celebrate and honor their family members tomorrow.
"You know, those ten families were connected forever ninety years ago tomorrow. And so again it gives us a commonality to be able to return to, and as generations go forward, come back and see all of this beautiful improvements that's been done to this, in addition to that plaque that's been there since the thirties," Lynn Graves, the second cousin of Jack Castellaw -- one of the Immortal Ten -- said.
Gone but not forgotten, Graves said the spirit of his second cousin, Jack, lives on within each member of his family. He even has a grandson named after his cousin... Jack Bell.
The dedication is scheduled for 2 p.m. on Jan. 22 at 221 E. Main St. in Round Rock.
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