FreightWaves Classics: Young girl saves hundreds of lives

Kate Shelley depicted crawling across a railroad bridge. (transportationhistory.org)

In modern times, a hero is often described as an ordinary person who is able to achieve an extraordinary feat. Another definition is someone who puts others before themselves and is selfless in a good way.

So it was in central Iowa on July 6, 1881 (141 years ago today). A deadly passenger train wreck was averted thanks to an ordinary teenage girl. Seventeen-year-old Katherine Carroll “Kate” Shelley is the heroine of this story. 

Born in Ireland, Kate and her family immigrated to the United...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/freightwaves-classics-young-girl-saves-hundreds-of-lives

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