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“STOP – DEATH – STOP” a gloriously excessive 1930s railroad crossing signal

Ellsworth Toohey
Jan 06, 2026
∙ Paid

Billups Neon Crossing Signal

In the mid-1930s, a dangerous Illinois Central railroad crossing in Grenada, Mississippi, had claimed too many lives. Local inventor Alonzo Billups had seen enough, and his solution was gloriously excessive: a massive gantry spanning the highway, topped with a giant neon skull and crossbones that flashed “STOP – DEATH – STOP”…

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