In County of Tipton v. Locomotive Works, the Supreme Court of the United States was asked to decide whether a county could be held liable for damages caused by a defective locomotive engine. The engine had been purchased by the county from the Locomotive Works, and the county had used it to power a ferryboat. The engine had malfunctioned, causing the ferryboat to sink and resulting in damages to the county. The Court held that the county could not be held liable for the damages caused by the defective engine. The Court reasoned that the county had not been negligent in purchasing the engine, and that the Locomotive Works had a duty to provide a safe and reliable engine. The Court also noted that the county had not been aware of the engine's defects, and that the Locomotive Works had not provided any warranty or guarantee of the engine's safety. The Court concluded that the county could not be held liable for the damages caused by the defective engine, and that the Locomotive Works was solely responsible for the damages. The Court held that the Locomotive Works was liable for the damages caused by the defective engine, and that the county was not liable.

In County of Tipton v. Locomotive Works, the Supreme Court was tasked with determining whether a county could be held liable for damages caused by its negligence in failing to repair a bridge that had been damaged by flooding. The majority opinion found that the county was not liable because it did not have actual knowledge of the condition of the bridge and thus could not be held responsible for any resulting damages. Justice Field dissented from this ruling, arguing that even if there had been no actual knowledge on behalf of the county, they still should have known about potential damage due to their duty as public officials to inspect bridges regularly and take necessary precautions against such risks. He argued further that since counties are charged with maintaining roads and bridges within their jurisdiction, they should also bear responsibility when these structures fail due to neglect or lack of maintenance.