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The Big Freeze 1963


Derek R.

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Winterwatch on BBC2 saw a reshowing of Cliff Michelmore introducing a program made in 1963 showing the effects of the Winter of '62/'63. Predominantly about the plight of wildlife, Winterwatch show the whole 1963 program which sees less of the wildlife aspect, and more of the human one. Trains Planes and Automobiles, as well as waterways are seen in the grip of the two month long Arctic weather that hit most of Britain. A reminder for those of us who saw and experienced it, and perhaps a bit of a shock to those who didn't.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01q9d86/Winterwatch_1963_The_Big_Freeze/

 

As it is on BBCi player, there will be a limit to the number of days this is available.

Broadcast today 19 January 2013.

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Winterwatch on BBC2 saw a reshowing of Cliff Michelmore introducing a program made in 1963 showing the effects of the Winter of '62/'63. Predominantly about the plight of wildlife, Winterwatch show the whole 1963 program which sees less of the wildlife aspect, and more of the human one. Trains Planes and Automobiles, as well as waterways are seen in the grip of the two month long Arctic weather that hit most of Britain. A reminder for those of us who saw and experienced it, and perhaps a bit of a shock to those who didn't.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01q9d86/Winterwatch_1963_The_Big_Freeze/

 

As it is on BBCi player, there will be a limit to the number of days this is available.

Broadcast today 19 January 2013.

 

Twas good i watched it today. I remember getting loads of sledging in walking home from the still open village school we all attended, the sea froze in many places and many roads where impassable. It was strange to see and hear the news pics of the day wiv the posh beeb accents I had forgotten how false it all was. There has not been anything even remotely like that winter since that one.

 

Tim

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Winterwatch on BBC2 saw a reshowing of Cliff Michelmore introducing a program made in 1963 showing the effects of the Winter of '62/'63. Predominantly about the plight of wildlife, Winterwatch show the whole 1963 program which sees less of the wildlife aspect, and more of the human one. Trains Planes and Automobiles, as well as waterways are seen in the grip of the two month long Arctic weather that hit most of Britain. A reminder for those of us who saw and experienced it, and perhaps a bit of a shock to those who didn't.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01q9d86/Winterwatch_1963_The_Big_Freeze/

 

As it is on BBCi player, there will be a limit to the number of days this is available.

Broadcast today 19 January 2013.

'

The 'Big Freeze' of 1962/3 has often been blamed or quoted as the reason for the 'end of canal carrying' - rather a sweeping statement when you think of the millions of tonnes carried afterwards on the system as a whole on canals and canalised rivers but many people only think in terms of narrow boats when talking about canal carrying. (As in 'the end of the Jam 'Ole traffic marked the end of canal carrying'). In conversation with some of those involved with narrow boats at the time no-one can think of a traffic of any consequence that was lost solely because of the freeze. Some traffics did finish just afterwards but there always seems to be another reason (Whitebirk Power station is one, I know it's not narrow boats, but even here I am told the main reason was the switch away from using coal from Bank Hall pit). It is true that British Waterways decided to give up most (though not all) of its Grand Union narrow boat activities in 1963, but this was mainly because of mounting losses, no doubt exacerbated by the freeze, and I am sure this had already been planned. But as far as I am aware those (narrow boat)traffics not retained by BW were handed to Willow Wren, and they then gradually ceased for one reason or another, with customers closing down, or switching to oil, closure of Regents Canal Dock (apart from the scrap trade), switch of imported grain to Tilbury, containerisation, and maybe some competition from the opening of the M1 - not sure how much that was to blame though. On the other hand British Waterways carried on with the north west division southern (narrow boat) fleet for another year. I was told by a transport professional that while the canals did suffer, it was exceptionally difficult for the railways as well during this period, and on the roads too, so maybe we shouldn't read too much into this connection no matter how rational it might appear. Any comments?

 

regards

 

David L

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Twas good i watched it today. I remember getting loads of sledging in walking home from the still open village school we all attended, the sea froze in many places and many roads where impassable. It was strange to see and hear the news pics of the day wiv the posh beeb accents I had forgotten how false it all was. There has not been anything even remotely like that winter since that one.

 

Tim

I dont know what you mean. Some of us speak proper.

I remember being off skool with the chicken pox in that period

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During the big freeze I went every day on the school bus from Brown Hills to Rishton.

I remember crossing the L&L at White Birk and seeing boats frozen in, after the thaw there were no more boats. Coincidence? Seems unlikely.

Incidentally, there was a boat builder next to the bridge, does anybody know the name and when they ceased trading? It might have been well before 1963, it was the sort of set up that probably looked semi derelict from the off.

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Connection? No more than another hammer on another nail in the coffin.

 

Oddly enough I cannot remember too much of that freeze even though I was 15yrs at the time. Part of that may have been due to me having left school and working on a farm in rural Dorset. We were pretty much out of touch with many things other than the continuing battle to get feedstuffs to livestock, and attempting to keep the milking parlour clean without water! And the agony of frozen feet in wellies stumbling over concrete hard ruts in formerly muddy gateways with baler twine cutting through equally frozen fingers and hands. No fun.

 

But I do remember the previous freeze. I was still at school, and stranded at my big Sisters house in Buckinghamshire. Ten inches of snow and no chance of going back to school - yippee!

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I arrived - as a 16 year - in the UK from Australia - where I had been since I was 4 - on the 27th of December. It was so exciting and dramatic and amazing!! I remember so much of it, but from a joyous 'play' perspective of course. My grandmother, aunt and uncle travelled separately by three different modes of transport to get to Heathrow to meet my brother and me (parents and sister followed in March). Straight from the Australian summer to the Big Freeze.

Edited by Jo_
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Am looking forward to watching this.

I was 6 at the time, we were living in Llangollen, a stones throw from the canal, and I went to school in Llantysilio.

I recall walking the last mile or so to school as the road was blocked with snow, we we walked through the fields.

Then, there was the big melt. The water was so high in Llangollen that the tops of arches of the Dee bridge were submerged on the upstream side, and just visible on the downstream side.

Graham

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I remember it well, was on the Arethusa training ship at the time moored at Upnor on the Medway. My hammock was hung adjacent to the door to the boat landing which needed to be kept open for access in case the emergency boat crew was needed. It was bloody freezing !

There was a quick glimpse of the Arethusa in the programme which bought back both happy and horrible memories.

When the tide went out on the Medway huge lumps of ice were left behind, even on a vessel that size the sound of ice scraping along the side of the hull was spooky.

Arethusa now sits in New York harbour having been returned to her original name "Peking" and is now a maritime museum

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Was frozen in at Suttons stop[Hawksbury Jcn] can not remember the exact time but think it was around the ten week mark before the ice breaker managed to get through .Was loaded with coal so at least could keep warm & also supply to the others there IIRC there were around 12 pairs altogether. We took it in turns to get supplies Heh Ho the good old days

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During the big freeze I went every day on the school bus from Brown Hills to Rishton.

I remember crossing the L&L at White Birk and seeing boats frozen in, after the thaw there were no more boats. Coincidence? Seems unlikely.

Incidentally, there was a boat builder next to the bridge, does anybody know the name and when they ceased trading? It might have been well before 1963, it was the sort of set up that probably looked semi derelict from the off.

 

Thanks John, that's very useful. I think what may have happened is that the plan to change coal allocation may have been brought forward so the 'big freeze, didn't cause the end of the contract but as Derek says was another nail in the coffin. As Bank Hall colliery remained open until 1971 I don't know why the NCB switched supplies to Yorkshire - it might have been to do with quality. Willow Wren and Ashby Canal Transport also had problems when allocations where changed, and when I wanted to load household coal for Skipton in 1973 it had to be brought by road to either Doncaster or Castleford as the NCB would not supply from one of the many waterside pits. (Last load of coal to Skipton, 40 tonnes, was discharged 6th June 1980).

 

If the boatyard referred to is Hodsons it closed in 1964. Mike Clarke would know best!

 

regards

 

David L

Edited by fanshaft
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Was frozen in at Suttons stop[Hawksbury Jcn] can not remember the exact time but think it was around the ten week mark before the ice breaker managed to get through .Was loaded with coal so at least could keep warm & also supply to the others there IIRC there were around 12 pairs altogether. We took it in turns to get supplies Heh Ho the good old days

Please tell us more! What boats were you on?

Paul

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Thanks John, that's very useful. I think what may have happened is that the plan to change coal allocation may have been brought forward so the 'big freeze, didn't cause the end of the contract but as Derek says was another nail in the coffin. As Bank Hall colliery remained open until 1971 I don't know why the NCB switched supplies to Yorkshire - it might have been to do with quality. Willow Wren and Ashby Canal Transport also had problems when allocations where changed, and when I wanted to load household coal for Skipton in 1973 it had to be brought by road to either Doncaster or Castleford as the NCB would not supply from one of the many waterside pits. (Last load of coal to Skipton, 40 tonnes, was discharged 6th June 1980).

 

If the boatyard referred to is Hodsons it closed in 1964. Mike Clarke would know best!

 

regards

 

David L

On the coal traffic, I have seen some correspondence in which coal from collieries on the southern Lancaster Canal pool were proposed for supplying Whitebirk Power Station. However, it was thought that Johnsons Hillock locks would need to be fully restored before regular traffic could start, which would have made it uneconomic in the short term, and that was one reason for the end of the coal traffic. The quality of coal from Bank Hall and Hapton Valley collieries was declining and not of power station standard, with coal being brought by rail from Yorkshire instead. Padiham power station could use poor quality coal as it was designed with a molten slag lining to the combustion area, and the Yorkshire coal had to have sand added to allow for the molten slag being produced during burning. Padiham was supplied by rail, not canal.

 

On Hodsons, I would suggest reading my article on the yard published in Waterways Journal 12 in 2010. I wrote this together with Sam Yates, who served his time at the yard and who continued working there after the yard became involved in caravans after boat traffic ended circa 1963. Besides being a boaybuilder, Sam also did allthe painting at the yard.

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On the coal traffic, I have seen some correspondence in which coal from collieries on the southern Lancaster Canal pool were proposed for supplying Whitebirk Power Station. However, it was thought that Johnsons Hillock locks would need to be fully restored before regular traffic could start, which would have made it uneconomic in the short term, and that was one reason for the end of the coal traffic. The quality of coal from Bank Hall and Hapton Valley collieries was declining and not of power station standard, with coal being brought by rail from Yorkshire instead. Padiham power station could use poor quality coal as it was designed with a molten slag lining to the combustion area, and the Yorkshire coal had to have sand added to allow for the molten slag being produced during burning. Padiham was supplied by rail, not canal.

 

On Hodsons, I would suggest reading my article on the yard published in Waterways Journal 12 in 2010. I wrote this together with Sam Yates, who served his time at the yard and who continued working there after the yard became involved in caravans after boat traffic ended circa 1963. Besides being a boaybuilder, Sam also did allthe painting at the yard.

 

On our first voyage past Wigan with the Short Boat 'Edith', it must have been 1966, we were held up at Johnson's Hillock because a converted wooden lifeboat had hit the bottom gates of the bottom lock and folded them inside out, a fair indication that those gates at least were pretty tired.

The lifeboat survived more or less unscathed.

 

Tim

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Was frozen in at Suttons stop[Hawksbury Jcn] can not remember the exact time but think it was around the ten week mark before the ice breaker managed to get through .Was loaded with coal so at least could keep warm & also supply to the others there IIRC there were around 12 pairs altogether. We took it in turns to get supplies Heh Ho the good old days

Vesta was frozen in at Ashwood for several weeks but because it was wrought iron it would still rock slightly while steel boats were trapped.I bored a hole in the ice at Ashwood and Diglis Basin Worcester and they were both 2ft 3inch thick.We built an igloo in the garden and the children played in it for some time but it gradually got smaller.

In the December I drove all round Scandinavia on business and there was less snow than in England.There were drifts for weeks several feet deep and rock hard.

Edited by Max Sinclair
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On the coal traffic, I have seen some correspondence in which coal from collieries on the southern Lancaster Canal pool were proposed for supplying Whitebirk Power Station. However, it was thought that Johnsons Hillock locks would need to be fully restored before regular traffic could start, which would have made it uneconomic in the short term, and that was one reason for the end of the coal traffic. The quality of coal from Bank Hall and Hapton Valley collieries was declining and not of power station standard, with coal being brought by rail from Yorkshire instead. Padiham power station could use poor quality coal as it was designed with a molten slag lining to the combustion area, and the Yorkshire coal had to have sand added to allow for the molten slag being produced during burning. Padiham was supplied by rail, not canal.

 

 

 

Thanks Mike, That is really useful.

 

I was sure you would know, and it does tie in with my recollection!

 

regards

 

David L

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Please tell us more! What boats were you on?

Paul

 

The boats were not mine. The motor was Dorset belonging to a good mate Rob Robinson & he had hired/ cajoled the loan of a butty from Jim Yates. It was pretty tatty & IIRC was named Star,motor was wood, butty iron/steel, the motor was loaded with some 18 or so tons of stone chippings for a mate of his for his drive way for his new house at Mk Drayton,the butty had 16 or so tons + around 4 tons of coal that had been squired in some round about deal? the cut had started to freeze & he asked me to give him a hand as his original crew arrived at the boats & only stayed 3 days before walking away he was wiser than I was. We ended up supplying some of the other pairs with coal for their ranges The trip took 15 week in total & I was involved for 13 weeks Ho Happy days [ just to add that Jim Yates moored his leisure boat at Norbury & Dorset moored there at that time Rob doing odd jobs for SUC`s]

Edited by AlanW
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This was the year when my parents moved home and we never saw the garden till April. Talking to boatman who remember these times the Cannock Extension and Wyrley & Essington were particularly affected. Some recall ice breaking and the canal refreezing until no water was left in the canal. Some boats were said to have broken up in these conditions. Was this true?

 

Ray Shill

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Nowt at all to do with boats or canals...but.. me and my mate went on my BSA C10 to the motor cycle "Dragon Rally" at Gwyrch Castle in the February, we were diverted away from the Horseshoe pass as there were 15 foot snow drifts... we must have been mad

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This was the year when my parents moved home and we never saw the garden till April. Talking to boatman who remember these times the Cannock Extension and Wyrley & Essington were particularly affected. Some recall ice breaking and the canal refreezing until no water was left in the canal. Some boats were said to have broken up in these conditions. Was this true?

 

Ray Shill

Terrible damage was caused on the BCN by the thick ice bowing down in the canal centre as water levels dropped pulling the brick lining out often in hundreds of yards lengths.Much of this was not repaired for years.On a spring cruise organised by the BCN Society the ice cut deep grooves in unsuspecting members boats.

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Winterwatch on BBC2 saw a reshowing of Cliff Michelmore introducing a program made in 1963 showing the effects of the Winter of '62/'63. Predominantly about the plight of wildlife, Winterwatch show the whole 1963 program which sees less of the wildlife aspect, and more of the human one. Trains Planes and Automobiles, as well as waterways are seen in the grip of the two month long Arctic weather that hit most of Britain. A reminder for those of us who saw and experienced it, and perhaps a bit of a shock to those who didn't.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01q9d86/Winterwatch_1963_The_Big_Freeze/

 

As it is on BBCi player, there will be a limit to the number of days this is available.

Broadcast today 19 January 2013.

 

I remember that winter so well. Used to cycle to school, crossing the Grand Union at Horton Bridge Lane, Yiewsley. That was the pretty well the death of canal transport. My grandfather worked boats for H Sabey, running back and forth to Paddington carrying aggregates.

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I remember that winter so well. Used to cycle to school, crossing the Grand Union at Horton Bridge Lane, Yiewsley. That was the pretty well the death of canal transport. My grandfather worked boats for H Sabey, running back and forth to Paddington carrying aggregates.

 

Melvyn email me will you as my family also worked for Sabeys and we all come from the yiewsley area.

Thanks

Darren

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