Question: What makeshift town in Texas was the site of a staged crash between two locomotives?
Answer: Crush, about 15 miles north of Waco. Billed as the “Crash at Crush,” the event was organized by William George Crush, a passenger agent for the Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroad. More than 40,000 people turned out to witness the spectacle on September 15, 1896.
Around 5 p.m., two engines, painted bright red and green, accelerated toward each other from opposite ends of a four-mile track, colliding after each had reached a speed of about 45 miles per hour. When the boilers exploded, debris flew everywhere, killing three people and injuring at least six others.
Crush was fired the same day but hired back the next. Composer Scott Joplin wrote a song celebrating the event in the following weeks. Enthusiasts continue to find train parts at the site, which is marked by a historical plaque.
