Street named after slave trader Edward Colston 'renamed' after activists who tore his statue down

A road named after slave trader Edward Colston has been unofficially renamed "Colston Four Road" after the activists who tore his statue down.

The sign on the corner of Colston Road in Easton, Bristol, was added this week by unknown protesters, above the original, and defaced, sign.

The "Colston Four" – Sage Willoughby, Rhian Graham, Milo Ponsford and Jake Skuse – were found not guilty of criminal damage after pulling the statue from its plinth during anti-racism protests in June 2020.

Colston Road is just one of several roads named after Colston, who is still described on the plaque where his statue stood as "one of the most virtuous and wise sons" of the city.

A bronze statue of the 17th-century slave trader stood in the centre of the city until it was pulled down and rolled into the River Avon during the Black Lives Matter movement of 2020.

The statue was later removed from the river and put on display in the city’s M Shed museum.

In the week after the statue was removed, residents of Colston Road set up a suggestion box to put forward ideas for a new name for their road.

Watch: Defendants cleared of Colston statue criminal damage (from January)

Colston was a Bristol-born merchant who made some of his fortune from the slave trade, and used his wealth to provide financial support to hospitals, schools, workhouses and churches in Bristol and throughout England.

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The statue has been the subject of controversy since the 1990s when Colston's reputation as a philanthropist came under scrutiny due to his involvement in organising the Atlantic slave trade as a senior executive of the Royal African Company.

The Colston Four activists were cleared of their charges in Bristol Crown Court last month, after the jury returned a majority verdict in two hours and 57 minutes.