Edward

**Edward** is an old mixed-traffic tender engine who works on the North Western Railway. He was one of the first engines to arrive on the railway, and helped with the railway's construction upon his arrival. He currently works on the Brendam Branch Line as a mixed-traffic engine, and works alongside BoCo.

Edward is one of the oldest and wisest engines on the Island of Sodor. He often serves as a voice of reason during hard times, and spreads his knowledge to the younger engines. Although he is occasionally made fun of for his old age, Edward retains a kind and optimistic demeanor, and is one of the most useful engines on the line.

## Biography

### The Early Years

Edward was built by Sharp, Stewart & Co. in Glasgow, Scotland in 1896, and worked on the Furness Railway in his early years. In 1915, he was transferred to Sodor to help with the construction of the North Western Railway. The Furness Railway found him to be a shy steamer and were not interested in getting him back, so they sold him to the North Western Railway for a "nominal sum".

After construction was complete, Edward was laid aside in the engine shed when newer, bigger and more powerful engines were put in service. The bigger engines would often rudely insult Edward, claiming that he would never come out of the shed again. However, when the Driver and Fireman came to the shed, they felt sorry for Edward and allowed him to pull a passenger train for the first time in ages. Edward proved to be a success, and the coaches greatly enjoyed his kind manners and his performance.

The next day, Edward was kept busy shunting trucks in the yard, when he was informed that Gordon had stalled on the hill with a goods train and was refusing to cooperate. Edward arrived at the scene and offered to push Gordon up the hill, but Gordon doubted that he was capable of helping him. With great effort, Edward managed to push Gordon over the hill, but Gordon was in such a hurry that he forgot to thank him. Edward ran down to Maron to refill on water, and his Driver promised him a new coat of paint for his good work.

After Gordon burst his safety valve while pulling the Express, Edward came out to try and pull the train, but the coaches were too heavy for him to move on his own. Henry, who had been bricked up inside the Ballahoo Tunnel, was allowed to come out of the tunnel and help Edward, and together, the two engines made it to the station safely.

When Thomas began grumbling in the sheds one evening, Edward became sorry for him, and allowed Thomas to take his goods train to Wellsworth while he looked after his shunting duties in the yard. Edward warned Thomas to be careful with the trucks, but Thomas was far too excited to listen to him. When James returned from the Works, Edward double-headed a passenger train with him.

### The Strike

Shortly after Thomas left the yard to run the Ffarquhar Branch Line, Gordon, James and Henry began complaining about the extra work they had to do, as they now had to fetch their own trains. The Fat Controller called Edward to Tidmouth to work as a shunting engine in the yard, but the big engines treated him with disrespect, claiming he had "black wheels".

After he acquired Percy, the Fat Controller shut the big engines up in the shed and had Edward and Thomas look after the trains on the Main Line, while Percy worked on the Ffarquhar Branch Line in Thomas' place. When the big engines realized their mistake and came out of the shed, Edward began teaching Percy how to shunt trucks in the yard.

## References

1. ↑ The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways
2. ↑ The Three Railway Engines
3. ↑ Thomas the Tank Engine
4. ↑ James the Red Engine
5. ↑ Troublesome Engines