William George Crush, on September 15, 1896 destroyed two locomotives just outside of West, Texas (currently the site of the Czech Stop). It was a free event, and his company offerered $2 rail fares from anywhere in Texas. Forty-thousand people showed up, along with medicine shows, carnival games, lemonade booths, caterers, two telegraph offices and a well-drilling team. Four miles of track was laid and engineers rehearsed many times to properly deliver what the Dallas Morning News called “a perfect view of the destruction.” Hired police ensured the crowd was at least 200 yards away.

Before:

After:

At 5:00 p.m., one hour late, the two engines, each pulling six cars, slowly met at the point of collision and were photographed. Then the trains backed slowly up the low hills to their starting points. The Sept. 16 issue of the News describes what happened next: “The smoke was pouring from their funnels in a great black streak and the popping of the steam could be distinctly heard for the distance of a mile. People were standing on tiptoe from every point of vantage trying to see every movement of the wheels that were so soon to roll to destruction … At 10 minutes after 5 Crush raised his hat and a great cheer went up from the throats of all the people.

“A crash, a sound of timbers rent and torn, and then a shower of splinters.”

“There was just a swift instance of silence, and then as if controlled by a single impulse both boilers exploded simultaneously and the air was filled with flying missiles of iron and steel varying in size from a postage stamp to half of a driving wheel”

3 men were killed, at least 8 others maimed and seriously wounded.

Mr. Crush was immediately fired. But railroad company that employed him rehired him the very next day due to the lack of negative publicity.

September 18, 2008, 1:34pm