Willoughby, Ohio, has a yearly community event involving trains in honor of "A Stop at Willoughby" known as "Last Stop Willoughby".
The train stations called out by the conductor on the 1960 train are real. At the time of the filming, stations such as "Stamford" and "Westport & Saugatuck" were stations on the New Haven Railroad. They continue to exist as of August 2015 as stations on the Metro North Railroad. However, present day maps, station signs and conductors, do not mention Saugatuck in the station name.
The original draft of this story was considered for the pilot episode of the series but eventually rejected. It was later rewritten for this end of season one episode.
Three of the songs played by the band in Willoughby, "Oh! Susanna", "Camptown Races", and "Beautiful Dreamer," are by Stephen Foster. Another is "Listen to the Mockingbird" by Foster's colleague Septimus Winner.