Billups Neon Crossing Signal

About

The Billups Neon Crossing Signal was an experimental grade crossing signal installed at a dangerous Illinois Central crossing on Mississippi Highway 7 (now Mississippi Highway 332) in Grenada, Mississippi.

The signal was installed in the mid-1930s by inventor Alonzo Billups over growing concern due to numerous collisions at the crossing involving trains and motor vehicles. Unlike anything likely seen around the country at the time, the Billups signal was a large gantry spanning the highway and was likely the first such use of a gantry-style crossing of the type now in relatively common use. Upon approach of a train, a giant alternating blue and red neon sign lit up with the words "STOP - DEATH - STOP" beneath a skull and crossbones. Flashing neon arrows indicated the direction that oncoming trains were traveling and an air raid siren (civil defense siren) in lieu of bells provided aural warning. As a backup, standard railway flashers were mounted below the neon sign. The signal was known locally as the "Skull and Crossbones."