"The trains came together at Kipton, the fast mail at full speed and the accommodation under brakes, because it was nearing the station. The engineers of both trains were killed, and the dead bodies of nine clerks were taken from the kindling wood and broken iron of the postal cars. The railroad sustained a heavy loss in property, and a large quantity of mail matter was either lost or destroyed."

 

Does anybody really know what time it is?  Before Web Ball and Standard Railroad Time, the anwer was, tragically, "No."  As America's train traffic increased, so did the risk to the traveling public, because without an accurate time standard, it was up to individual railroad employees to decide when to move on or off common tracks.  Ball stepped in and created business success for himself and safety for the traveling public.