Project to Mark Centenary of Withernsea Rail Disaster

A project is being developed to honour the Withernsea victims of one of East Yorkshire’s worst rail disasters, as the town prepares to mark the 100th anniversary of the tragedy.

Several local residents are involved in researching the Withernsea to Hull rail crash of 14 February 1927. The disaster is remembered not only for the lives lost, but also for the courage, sacrifice, community spirit and remembrance that followed.

The victims were ordinary people going about their daily lives. They were schoolchildren, clerks, typists, businessmen, commuters, parents, sons and daughters. In a matter of seconds, their lives were taken, and the tragedy left a lasting mark on Withernsea, Hull and the wider East Yorkshire community.

The crash also led to changes in railway safety practices in Hull, while the memory of those affected has continued to be carried quietly through generations.

Remembering the Victims and Survivors

The centenary memorial project aims to remember all victims and survivors, correct historical omissions, preserve eyewitness testimonies, honour the rescuers and medical staff, record family histories before they are lost and educate future generations.

Project manager Darrin Stevens said: “This stands as an opportunity to ensure their names, stories and sacrifices are never forgotten. It is an incredibly moving story.”

Darrin is hoping that relatives of those who died, survived, or were involved in some way, will come forward with information that can be included in the project.

A memorial plaque will be unveiled in Withernsea near where the railway station once stood, and an information booklet about the disaster is also being prepared.

The Morning of the Crash

On the morning of Monday 14 February 1927, the people of Withernsea began their day as they had done countless times before. Shortly after 8.15am, commuters gathered for their daily journey into Hull on the 8.22am express.

It was St Valentine’s Day. Within an hour, a dozen people would be dead.

At about 9.10am, near Argyle Street Bridge on the approach to Hull Paragon Station, the incoming Withernsea train collided head-on with the outgoing 9.05am Scarborough service.

The impact devastated the leading coaches of the Withernsea train. Witnesses described the wooden carriages telescoping “like concertinas”, as roofs collapsed, glass shattered and passengers were thrown through splintered wreckage.

The first carriage was almost completely destroyed. Twelve people, 11 of whom were from Withernsea, would ultimately lose their lives, either instantly or later in hospital. Many others suffered serious and life-changing injuries.

Several of the victims were young schoolboys travelling daily to Hull Grammar School and Hymers College.

Courage in the Aftermath

The disaster happened directly beside what is now Hull Royal Infirmary. Within moments, nurses, doctors and hospital staff were climbing walls and rushing onto the railway lines to help the injured.

A hole was smashed through the boundary wall so casualties could be carried directly into the hospital grounds.

Contemporary newspaper reports described scenes resembling a battlefield. Steam hissed across twisted metal and shattered timber while rescuers crawled into unstable wreckage. Railway workers arrived carrying crowbars, saws and pickaxes. Residents also opened their homes to the many injured passengers.

One of the most haunting accounts came from 16-year-old survivor Tom Sheppard, who later spent his entire working life on the railways.

Tom had been travelling with friends in the front coaches of the Withernsea train when the collision occurred.

“I heard a noise I can only describe as a massive gong sounding in my ear,” he later recalled.

Tom was thrown onto the locomotive tender as the coaches collapsed around him. Several friends nearby were killed instantly. He remained trapped against the engine tender for more than two hours while rescuers struggled to cut through the wreckage. Years later, he still remembered the smell of railway oil gas.

A Family Tragedy

Among the 12 victims was Arthur Jefferson Jackson, a 23-year-old assistant librarian from Withernsea.

His story remains one of the most tragic associated with the collision. He had married his wife Molly only the previous year. Family recollections state that the couple first met at the cinema and walked home together because they lived opposite one another in Lascelles Avenue.

Just eight days before the crash, Molly had given birth prematurely to their son Julian. Arthur never saw his baby boy.

Molly was so fragile following childbirth that relatives delayed telling her of Arthur’s death for several days, fearing the shock would be too great. Hull Libraries Committee later awarded the family one year’s salary because compensation had still not arrived months later.

Restoring People, Not Statistics

For decades, families carried the memory of the disaster quietly through the generations. Now, nearly 100 years later, renewed efforts are under way to ensure the victims are fully remembered.

Researchers Darrin Stevens, Wendy Graves and Robin Barnfarther have spent years compiling records, reading newspaper reports, studying eyewitness accounts, burial information and family testimonies.

Their work has helped identify inaccuracies in earlier records and restore personal histories to many of those involved.

The centenary memorial, planned for 14 February 2027, will honour not only the victims, but also the extraordinary courage shown by rescuers and medical staff on that fateful morning.

The Inquiry and Lasting Impact

The official inquiry concluded that a signalling error inside Park Street signal box diverted the Scarborough train onto the same line as the incoming Withernsea service. However, controversy continued for decades.

Signalman John Clark always denied pulling the wrong lever, insisting the electro-pneumatic signalling system had malfunctioned. Witnesses reported hearing unusual clicking sounds from the signal frame on the morning of the crash.

The inspector leading the inquiry reportedly remarked: “If there is such a thing as an infinity to one chance, this is it.”

Following the disaster, major modernisation works were undertaken around Paragon Station and improved signalling safety systems were introduced. But for the families left behind, no technical explanation could erase the human cost.

Withernsea itself became, in the words of one newspaper, “a town in mourning”. Across East Yorkshire, the shock of the disaster lingered for years.

Darrin added: “The centenary has the potential to become a major local heritage project. Most importantly, the victims are being restored as people rather than statistics, which is exactly what memorial history should do.”

For more information, or to get in touch regarding the research, call Darrin on 07956 386720 or email darrin@darrinstevens.co.uk.

Tragedy on Valentine’s

Day: the 12 victims killed outright.
Philip Escreet, aged17, clerk, of South Promenade, Withernsea.
Arthur Jefferson Jackson, aged 23, assistant librarian, Hull, of 16 Princes Street, Withernsea.
Percy Kitching, aged 42, of103 Bannister Street, Withernsea.
Richard Francis Jackson, aged 13, grammar schoolboy, of St George’s House, South Promenade, Withernsea.
Elsie Green, aged 30, single, of Kelsey House, Lascelles Avenue, Withernsea.
Arnold Osborne, aged 2, Ironmonger’s clerk, of 16 Lascelles Avenue, Withernsea.
Gladys Ellen Boyd, aged 24, typist, 21 Sefton Street, Hessle Road, Hull - she had been visiting her fiancé in Withernsea.

Died of injuries
Angus McKay, aged 32, timber merchant’s clerk, of 16 Lascelles Avenue, Withernsea.
Alfred M Severs, aged 58, accountant for Hull Corporation, of Hollym.
Fredrick Boodie, aged 12, grammar schoolboy, of South Parade, Withernsea.
Tommy Potts, aged12, grammar school boy, of Arrowdene, Park Avenue, Withernsea.
Maurice Perry, aged 17, of Withernsea.