Did you know that the Wabash Railroad named its express run between Detroit and St Louis as the Wabash Cannon Ball in 1949, in the wake of the song's popularity? It is the only actual train to bear the name, which it carried until discontinued in 1971. However, the train was named after the song, not the other way around.
The folk song was originally published 1882 as "The Great Rock Island Route" and was rewritten with different lyrics over the years with a rewritten version by William Kindt appearing in 1904 under the title "Wabash Cannon Ball". If you sing the chorus, you can easily understand why Kindt changed the name to the Wabash Cannon Ball. It simply sounds better like the Chattanooga Choo Choo. Not many other names that work that well in that tune either - can you imagine the composer using "Cincinnati Choo Choo"?
