On August 12, 1853, two Providence and Worcester Railroad passenger trains collided head-on in Valley Falls, Rhode Island.

The use of timetables and personal watches to avoid accidents, instead of a proper railroad signaling system, was also found to be unsafe.

Departing from Uxbridge, Massachusetts, at 6:30 a.m. was a special excursion train of eight cars carrying approximately 475 vacationers heading for Providence and ultimately the beaches of Narragansett Bay.

At approximately 8 a.m., just after rounding a curve, the northbound train was struck by the excursion, which was travelling at an estimated 40 miles per hour (60 km/h).

[5] The next regularly scheduled train stopping at Valley Falls happened upon the wreck and those on board began working to clear it.

Had the train departed a minute earlier, it would have been past the curve north of Boston Switch (the point where the Providence and Worcester Railroad main line diverged from the Boston and Providence Railroad main line) and visible from Valley Falls station, making it likely the collision could have been averted.

[2] Guilt was also found on the part of the Providence and Worcester Railroad in assigning Putnam to the train despite him having little experience.

It was also established that the southbound train had a history of running behind schedule ever since Putnam had been assigned to it, but no action was taken by the company to address the issue.