UK Weather - past and present
Month of October
Thunderstorm in October, 1810
A dreadful thunderstorm took place at Sheffield on Saturday week, which did much mischief in the neighbourhood; and, near Norton Hammer, a respectable farmer was thrown from his horse, and killed on the spot.
Collapse of Rother Valley Viaduct,1st October 1848
Rain and floods had caused damage in parts of the country as distant as Worcestershire and Yorkshire.
FALLING OF THE ROTHER VIADUCT. - A dreadful casualty, attended with loss of life, occurred at the Rother Viaduct, near the junction of the Manchester, Sheffield, and Lincolnshire Railway with the Midland at Beighton, on Saturday morning. The viaduct was about a quarter of a mile in length, and was to consist of 36 arches, built on soft clayey ground. Upwards of 20 of the arches were completed, and the rest was in progress; the late heavy rains had, however, interfered with the work. The river had overflowed, and the water had found its way into the foundation of the piers. The piers have sunk 141/2 inches since the commencement of the building, but measures were taken to support them, which were unfortunately unsuccessful. The 20 arches fell in, killing two men on the spot, and so severely wounding another that he died shortly after. Two other men were also severely injured. The piers yet stand, but the brickwork of the fallen arches having blocked up the channel of the river Rother, the country around is flooded to such an extent that the place is almost inaccessible.
This was part of the trunk line of what afterwards became the Great Central Railway, a vital link between Liverpool, Manchester, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and London over the Great Northern route then approaching completion.
23 October, 1859
SNOW IN THE WEST RIDING. - The temperature of the atmosphere in the West Riding has been remarkably cold within the last few days. Piercing winds have prevailed, and on Saturday, in the district of which Bradford is the centre, there was a considerable fall of snow, some of which lay on the ground for hours, giving quite a wintry appearance to the previously autumnal landscape.
Weather Report for 5th October, 1864
