History Series / PetticoatJunction

* CharacterizationMarchesOn: In conjunction with TheOtherDarrin. The girls' personalities shifted a lot as their actresses were recast, apparently to whatever best suited the talents and qualities of the new actress. Billie Jo started out the series as a zany bombshell, but after Meredith Macrae took over the role, she became a career-minded OnlySaneMan. Similarly, when Lori Saunders took over the role of Bobbie Jo, the character went from bookish and shy to flighty and scatter-brained. Even Betty Jo, who was played by Linda Henning for the entire run, dropped her tomboy qualities after she got married, but this seems to have been intentional CharacterDevelopment.

That is rollin' down the tracks\\
To the junction.\\

It is time to relax\\
At the junction.\\

There's a little hotel\\
Called "The Shady Rest"\\
At the junction.\\

Come an' be her guest\\
At the junction.\\

He's-a movin' kinda slow\\
At the junction!\\

The series centered around Kate Bradley (Bea Benaderet), a widowed mother of three teenaged daughters and the owner of a quaint hotel called the Shady Rest near the small whistle-stop town of Hooterville. In this she was allegedly assisted by her bachelor uncle Joe P. Carson (Edgar Buchanan), who tried to avoid getting involved in anything resembling work. Most episodes revolved around Kate trying to micro-manage her girls' love lives or deter Joe's various money-making schemes. From time to time the railroad company, represented by the mean-spirited Homer Bedloe (Charles Lane), would threaten to shut down the isolated spur line serving Hooterville and its antiquated "Cannonball" train, but Kate would always straighten them out, because she needed the train -- operated by engineer Charley Pratt (Smiley Burnette) and fireman/conductor Floyd Smoot (Rufe Davis) -- to bring the Shady Rest its guests.

''Petticoat'' is known for its numerous cast changes; to start, there were the three daughters, Billie Jo, Betty Jo and Bobbie Jo (just don't ask which one's which). Only one of them was played by the same actress through the entire series, and another daughter was recast twice. Then, Bea Benaderet fell ill and died early in the sixth season, so June Lockhart was cast to replace Kate as a new maternal figure, town doctor Janet Craig. Lockhart played her character straighter than comical Benederet, and the remaining episodes shifted more to Betty Jo's married life. There was also some turnover in the supporting cast along the way.

* LongBusTrip: Kate herself. Immediately following her disappearance (and Bea Benederet’s death), it is explained Kate has gone out of town to care for a sick aunt. She is barely mentioned again, regardless of how strange it is for Kate to never stop back home and see her newborn granddaughter. She is briefly mentioned in the final season, and although the cast shows some wistfulness in the moment, Kate’s status is left very ambiguous.

* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: Dr. Craig took over Kate's role as the daughters' motherly figure (despite the fact that they were already well into adulthood by then) and the most sensible person on the show after Bea Benederet's death.

* WackyMarriageProposal: When Steve Elliot intends to propose to Betty Jo, Sam Drucker catches wind of it and prints it on the front page of the ''Hooterville World Guardian''. To avoid being scooped, Steve proposes to [[WrenchWench Betty Jo]] while she's upside-down working on his plane.

* LongTitle: The episodes "I Can't Hear You When the Thunder Is Clapping" and "The Sneaky Ways of a Woman Who Is Both Beautiful and Smart."

* TheDitz: Floyd. One must wonder how he's a train conductor in the first place.

* WackyMarriageProposal: When Steve Elliot intends to propose to Betty Jo Bradley, Sam Drucker catches wind of it and prints it on the front page of the ''Hooterville World Guardian''. To avoid being scooped, Steve proposes to [[WrenchWench Betty Jo]] while she's upside-down working on his plane.

* TheDitz: Floyd. It's a wonder how he's a train conductor in the first place.

* CoolOldGuy: Bedloe's boss, Norman Curtis, quickly turns into this, being fascinated by Hooterville and its people, enjoying his visits out there and putting his foot down whenever he catches Bedloe trying to shut down the Cannonball again.

!!Tropes featured include:

* DinosaurDoggieBone: In the second-season episode, "The Brontosaurus Caper", Betty Jo's dog goes through an open window into the closed-for-repairs Pixley Museum. Stealing the bones one-by-one, he slowly brings the skeleton of a baby Brontosaurus back to the hotel.

* DisappearedDad: Kate is a WidowWoman raising her daughters on her own.

* ShopKeeper: Sam Drucker, who also doubles as postmaster, newspaper editor/publisher, constable, Justice of the Peace, school superintendent, and part of the Hooterville Volunteer Fire Department.

[[quoteright:320:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Petticoat_Junction_9490.jpg]]

-->-- the ExpositoryThemeTune, cowritten and performed by Curt Massey

* ExpositoryThemeTune: Written and performed by Curt Massey. "Come ride the little train that is rollin' down the tracks to the junction..."

-->-- the ExpositoryThemeTune

* PutOnABus: Kate was written out in Season 6 with the explanation that she had to tend to her sick aunt. [[RealLifeWritesThePlot In reality, her actress had died.]]

''Petticoat'' is known for its numerous cast changes; to start, there were the three daughters, Billie Jo, Betty Jo and Bobbie Jo (just don't ask which one's which). Only one of them was played by the same actress through the entire series, and another daughter was recast twice. Then, Bea Benaderet fell ill and died early in the sixth season, so June Lockhart was cast to replace Kate as a new maternal figure, town doctor Janet Craig. Lockhart played her character straighter than comical Benederet, and the remaining episodes shifted more to Betty Jo's married life. There was some turnover in the supporting cast along the way.

(train bell)\\

(train whistle)\\

At the junction!\\\
'''PETTICOAT''' JUNCTION!''\\
(train whistle)

->''Come ride the little train that is rollin' down the tracks\\
To the junction\\

Forget about your cares, it is time to relax\\
At the junction\\

Lots of curves, you bet! Even more when you get\\
To the junction\\

There's a little hotel called "The Shady Rest"\\
At the junction\\
('''Petticoat''' Junction!)\\
It is run by Kate. Come an' be her guest\\
At the junction\\
('''Petticoat''' Junction!)\\
An' that's Uncle Joe! He's-a movin' kinda slow\\

(*train whistle*)

-->- The theme song

The series centered around Kate Bradley (Bea Benaderet), a widowed mother of three teenaged daughters and the owner of a quaint hotel called the Shady Rest near the small whistle-stop town of Hooterville. In this she was allegedly assisted by her bachelor uncle Joe P. Carson (Edgar Buchanan), who tried to avoid getting involved in anything resembling work. Most episodes revolved around Kate trying to micro-manage her girls' love lives or deter Joe's various money-making schemes. From time to time the railroad company, represented by the evil Homer Bedloe (Charles Lane), would threaten to take away the isolated spur line serving the town and its antiquated "Hooterville Cannonball" train, but Kate would always straighten them out, since she needed the train -- operated by engineer Charley Pratt (Smiley Burnette) and fireman/conductor Floyd Smoot (Rufe Davis) -- to bring the Shady Rest its guests.

The series centered around Kate Bradley (Bea Benaderet), a widowed mother of three teenaged daughters and the owner of a quaint hotel called the Shady Rest near the small whistle-stop town of Hooterville. In this she was allegedly assisted by her bachelor uncle Joe P. Carson (Edgar Buchanan), who tried to avoid getting involved in anything resembling work. Most episodes revolved around Kate trying to micro-manage her girls' love lives or deter Joe's various money-making schemes. From time to time the railroad company would threaten to take away the isolated spur line serving the town and its antiquated "Hooterville Cannonball" train, but Kate would always straighten them out, since she needed the train -- operated by engineer Charley Pratt (Smiley Burnette) and fireman/conductor Floyd Smoot (Rufe Davis) -- to bring the Shady Rest its guests.

* AwfulWeddedLife: Homer Bedloe's wife never appears, but their marriage isn't a happy one. In one episode, Bedloe rants to his son about how much he hates the main characters. When an astonished Homer Jr. asks if he hates them "more than Mother," Bedloe has to think hard about that before replying.