From 1950 to 1952, the story of Marvin Osbaldeston was in newspapers across Canada. Unfortunately, it was for a tragic reason.
Marvin Osbaldeston was a resident of Vermilion and a popular individual in the community. His life seemed to be going on a normal track until one day on June 10, 1950, when he was involved in a head-on vehicle collision west of Monarch, Alberta.
Three people were injured in the collision that saw a truck loaded with eight tons of lime crash into their vehicle. Only the driver of the truck, John Gibson, was not injured.
The worst injury was to Marvin Osbaldeston, who was knocked unconscious.
It was at this point, that Marvin began to appear in newspapers around Canada. On Sept. 27, 1950, he was written about in the Toronto Star as he reached 109 days of unconsciousness. The tragedy of this was that only one month after the collision, he was due to be married. The newspaper reported that his fiancé Agnes sat at his side every day while he was unconscious. She was injured in the collision but her injuries were minor. She worked in Lethbridge but obtained a transfer to Vermilion so she could be with her fiancé.
Doctors reported that his subconscious reactions were normal. He yawned, stretched his arms and legs and sweat when he was warm. It was believed he had a blood clot in his brain but when doctors did brain surgery, they found no clots.
On Jan. 26, 1951, the Calgary Herald reported that Marvin had reached 230 days of unconsciousness. Doctors reported that his condition had not changed.
On June 5, 1951, the North Bay Nugget reported that he had reached one year unconscious. Marvin’s mother reported that his eyes would open slightly, and he moved his feet when they were tickled. Despite this, he has never spoken. He had also gained 12 pounds of weight during his time unconscious over the previous year.
Agnes also said she was not going to change her plans in marrying Marvin. She simply wanted to wait until he woke up.
Sadly, mere days after the one year anniversary, Marvin died. He had been unconscious for 371 days.
In March 1952, Marvin’s father Albert was awarded $13,000 in damages by the trucking company. Agnes received $6,000 in damages.
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