A strange, distinctly American, trend emerged in the mid-1890s. Promoters began to stage train wrecks in the hope of turning a profit. People turned out in droves to witness huge iron locomotives violently reaffirming the fundamental law of nature that two masses cannot occupy the same space at the same time. While many books have been written about selected staged train wrecks, It Will be A Real Smash-up! seeks to acknowledge every known staged wreck. Beginning with the first attempt in 1895, the reader's mind will travel across the country, through four decades, surveying the Golden Age of staged train wrecks. During this journey, readers will learn about the two most infamous events: the 1896 Crash at Crush and the 1904 fiasco at the Point of Pines. This book also includes wrecks staged specifically for film and public education as well as a database of all known staged wrecks.