When last we left our intrepid marketing mastermind, W.G. Crush, he had settled on a location 3 miles south of West, Texas and picked a date for his staged train crash.
Crush didn’t stop with 6 extra miles of train line (2 miles to get people to the location and 4 miles to pick up speed for the trains headed at one another). He chose two full trains (one steam engine each plus 6 cars), not just two engines. He also ordered a circus tent from Ringling Brothers to be used as a restaurant; two wells to supply water to the throngs of expected spectators; a depot for this new town that would exist for exactly 1 day; a 2100 foot platform around said depot; a full carnival midway complete with games, ‘freak’ shows and rides for the kids; several grandstands; a bandstand; two telegraph offices; speaker stands for politicians; and a jail in case anyone got out of hand. Furthering this grandiose vision, the temporary town was named Crush after himself. Crush expected 25,000 people to ride the rails to visit Crush, Texas for this magnificent crash.
And the story has only begun – check back this weekend for part 5.
If you want a slower, safer bit of history, book a tour.
Image: an undated photo of an MKT train pulling out of Dallas. Taken from FlashBackDallas.com.
