A “railroad” is coming to Elizabethton.

….Confederate Railroad, that is.

GoBetsy, a local grassroots organization working to improve the “accessibility and beautification” of the community, is announcing plans to bring the classic southern rock and country band to town for a Memorial Day weekend concert.

GoBetsy spokesperson Chris Little says he is excited to bring the American Country Music award-winning and Country Music Association award-nominated band to Elizabethton on Sunday, May 24, at 7 p.m. at Elizabethton High School.

Tickets for reserved seating will be $15, $20 and $25. Doors will open at 6 p.m.; the concert will start at 7 p.m. Tickets are available at GoBetsy.com. Ticket prices will be $3 more at the door so advance ticket purchases are recommended.

“We would love to sell 2,000 tickets,” Little says. “It will be a great concert at a great price and all the profits go back into the community.”

Confederate Railroad first rolled onto the national country music scene in the early ’90s. They started out as the back up band for both David Allan Coe and Johnny Paycheck. Then they got their big break by signing with Atlantic Records. Overall, the group has sold five million albums and has 18 charted hits including “She Took It Like A Man,” “Jesus and Mama,” “Queen of Memphis,” and “She Never Cried.” Their hit, “Trashy Women,” was nominated for a Grammy and became their signature song. Their debut album, simply titled “Confederate Railroad,” which included six hits and brought in nearly three million sales, led to the group receiving the Best New Group Award in 1993 from the ACM.

Little says that with an award-winning group like this he is hoping for another success similar to the one Elizabethton High School hosted when it first opened — a sell-out concert featuring Jerry Lee Lewis.

“We believe in helping other people,” Little said. “This concert won’t only benefit us. Reserved parking will be $5 and Carter County Constables will get half of that to help pay for new radios, as they will provide parking and security. Appalachian Tails Rescue will also benefit, as they will be providing the concessions. Because of the concert, they will be exposed to a large contingent. We’re trying to help each other, it would be wonderful to have strong community support.”

GoBetsy is a 501-C3 organization, a small non-profit “trying to do things that need to be done,” Little said.

Profits from the concert can help GoBetsy move forward with community projects, including the construction of a trout fishing ramp under Highway 400 bridge, a project planned in conjunction with City of Elizabethton Parks and Recreation.

“TWRA, who has designed the ramp, has agreed to pay for building the ramp, possibly including the cost of materials, and Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has put it on their list to later pave the parking lot. The property is owned by TDOT and they’re leasing the property to Elizabethton for $1. We’re going to try to get everybody to come together to make something out of nothing.”

Another project on GoBetsy’s radar includes beautification work around the Covered Bridge Park.

“That is our center point of tourism and it needs some work,” Little said. “It definitely needs some landscaping, and it will depend on how well we do on the concert as to how much we can do down there.

“If we can really lay some super nice landscaping, if we can turn it into a picture,” Little added. The project will be guided by plans developed by a team from Appalachian State University that recently completed a design project for the park, he said.

He pointed to one of GoBetsy’s completed projects, the installation of new LED lighting at Rat Branch Boat Dock.

“We got the TVA to do that,” he said. “We try to find cost-prohibitive projects and help.

“This all started with the Innovation Development Environment Accessibility and Services (IDEAS) Group, with Dr. Jess Miller, Metin Eryasa and myself,” Little said. “From that, Surf Betsy, which is focused on bringing water tourism to the community, was formed, and then GoBetsy, which is mostly focused on accessibility and beautification.

“That’s how are we building the foundation, doing the ground level work. For instance, we need parking lots at Blue Hole, so we make our resources accessible. We have a lot of local contractors who, for one day, will bring in their heavy equipment for free. Then we get donations for gravel, pipe and more. We are trying to raise money for materials to complete projects.”

So now the group is putting their efforts into ensuring a successful fundraising concert. If all goes well, Little says he hopes the group can eventually grow to sponsor two to three events a year.

“It will take money to make money,” Little said. “It all starts with this concert and we are hoping it will be a huge success. You have to slowly build it up. A good portion will go to current projects but a part will be set aside for future projects. We are hoping for great community support.”