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Edwin Colville was an early member of the ASRS. The Union was established in August 1871; Edwin joined in June 1872, at the Kings Cross No. 1 branch. His membership register number was 320.
Edwin was a Great Northern Railway goods guard; he spent his working life living close to Kings Cross. He and his wife Louisa were married in 1870 and had nine children.
Edwin’s work as a goods guard was partly a trackside role which included examining and checking the train before departure. However, his career-ending injury occurred in 1896, when a light engine ran into the rear of his goods train at Harringay and he sustained a fractured skull.
He left the railway after the accident and it is likely that he was unable to work again. ASRS solicitors negotiated a financial settlement with the railway company totalling £270. This amount would likely have made a real difference to Edwin and his family.
This account is one of over 20 life stories featured in the Railway Work, Life & Death project’s ‘Lives on the Line: Railway Workers, Accidents & Union Action’ exhibition at project partner the Modern Records Centre, from October 2026 until mid-January 2027. It was researched and put together by William Ramsden, current University of Portsmouth PhD student, looking at post-accident provision for English and Welsh railway workers from c.1897-1939.