GENUKI: The Great Hurricane in Sheffield Tuesday 16 December 1873

SHEFFIELD:

The Great Hurricane in Sheffield Tuesday 16 December 1873

Extracted from the
Sheffield and Rotherham Independent
dated 17 December 1873
by Karen Turner.

"Not since the terrible night in 1864 when the Dale Dyke Dam burst its banks has such a calamity occurred in Sheffield as that which took place yesterday morning. The gale which then swept over the town with a relentless fury which we in this country are fortunately unfamiliar and which has caused the loss of 7 lives, perhaps 3 or 4 times that number of persons are now lying more or less seriously injured; and as this was not enought there has been an immense destruction of property. Whilst all Sheffield was calmly eating its breakfast, terrible scenes were being enacted. Houses were being unroofed, trees were torn up as if they were saplings, great chimney shafts pointing their way proudly 40 or 50 yards into our cloudy sky were being toppled over like diminutive ninepins. From one end of the town to the other there is hardly a street that does not bear signs of injury; there is hardly a house which has escaped. Panes are dashed in; tiles and slates were blown about like pieces of paper; windows rattled enough almost to wake the Seven Sleepers; houses were shaken as if there were an earthquake."

"The wind began to get high soon after 1 o'clock yesterday morning. It then died away for a little time the stillness which precedes the storm and then it burst out with great fury from four o'clock, it gradually increased in violence until half-past nine. Very little damage seems to have been done till 8 but from then till nearly 10 there was a constant succession of casualties and tidings of chimneys blown down, men killed, and roofs fallen in came "fast and furious". Men were seen rushing here and there with "bated breath" for Death was stalking amongst them and his never-ceasing scythe had laid many a victim low."

Fatalities (excluding George Bower) were lying at the Dog and Partridge Inn, Trippet Lane; George Bower is stated as being in the dead-house at the Dispensary.

Name	Occupation	Address
John Brown	Cutler	Trippet Lane
John Aster	Cutler	Newcastle Street
William Evans	Cutler	Spring Street
John Crookes	Spring knife cutler	Orchard Lane
Thomas Paules	Cutler	Snow Lane
George Bower	Cutler	Water Street

List of injured at the General Infirmary

Name	Address	Injuries
John Bradbury, blacksmith of Newhall		Scalp wound and contusions Found buried in the ruins at Crucible Steel Foundry, Newhall
Mark Rolley, fettler who lived at Rotherham		Dead on admission Killed at Crucible Steel Foundry, Newhall, inquest opened on 16/12/1873 at the Infirmary and adjourned to 30th inst
Henry Sidebottom, 22	17 Bramwell Street	Extensive scalp wound, was working out of doors somewhere and pallisades fell on him
James Craig, 42	No1 Court, house No. 2, Lee Croft	Scalp wound sustained at Messrs Thos Firth and Sons, Norfolk Works, Saville Street
John Winter, 25	88 Birch Road, Attercliffe	Scalp wound sustained at Messrs Thos Firth and Sons, Norfolk Works, Saville Street
Charles Walshaw, 36	Birley House, Wadsley Bridge	Injury to ankle by falling off a ladder at Wadsley
Robert Hawksworth, 42	Hilltop	Had his arm broken by being blown off a stack at Hilltop.

At the Public Hospital and Dispensary:

Name	Address	Injury
F Shaw, 4	Broad Lane	Injury to head from fall of a house
William Shaw, 11	As above, living at same house	Injuries to the head
S Matthews, 14	Pitt Street	Scalp wound
J Hodgson, 24	Club Garden Walk	Dislocation of shoulder from the fall of a cart shed
J Greaves, 18	Cambridge Street	Injury to head and arm
A Bradley, 25	Broad Lane	Injury to hand and arms
Patrick Gantley, 64	Willey Street	Injury to shoulder
William Hodgson, 73	Mount Pleasant, Highfield	Fractures to arms
William Broad, 43	Club Gardens	Injury to back from the falling of a wall
Edward Mason, 36	Canning Street	Scalp wound
J McWomack, 29	Scotland Street	Bruises and contusions
H Copley, 13	Daisy Walk	Injury to hand
Dennis Manning, 23	Water Lane	Injury to hand and fingers
William Liddle, 55	Green Lane	Injury to right eye
A Anley, 54	Bennett Lane	Injury to shoulder
M A Johnson, 2	Broomspring Lane	Slight injuries

Other people mentioned in the article

Name	Address	Remarks
Charles Cash, labourer	Town Well yard, Church Street	No injuries, chimney through roof into bedroom
Mrs Greenhill	266 Ecclesall Road	House unroofed and uninhabitable, very valuable furniture destroyed, some jewellery missing
Mr Naylor, Heeley Post Master		Gust of wind took him off his legs in Oak Street and then threw him down - fracture of the hip
Mr Eberlin, Pork Butcher,	Sheffield Moor	Roof of cart shed in Alexandra Road, Heeley lifted clean away and taken to top of a house near where it knocked down the chimney stack
Mr Smith	Cherrytree Road, Sharrow	Large tree broken off at the trunk and carried across the road
Mr Cardwell	Nunnery Farm, Sheffield Park	Stack of straw blown down and partly carried away
Emma Shaw	Broad Lane	Injury to head etc
John Shaw, edge tool forger	11 Broad Lane	Dwelling house totally demolished
Sarah Bower, 26	75 Spring Street	Scalp wound and compound dislocation of left ankle
Mary Ann Bower, 31	28 Water Street	Compound fracture of lower jaw, wounds on face etc
G H Hardwick, 27	Trippet Lane	Injury to the spine and fracture of left arm
Wm Bower	28 Water Street	Lacerated wound on right side
J Bocking, 37	164 Portobello Street	Crushed abdomen and wound on the face
Henry Bocking, 14	164 Portobello Street	Crushed hand and bruised head
Wiliam Noble, 46	Portobello	Scalp wound
John Noble, 23	128 Portobello	Scalp wound; thigh and other parts of the body injured
Thomas Clarke, lamp-lighter	Yard in Portobello area	Fall of chimney damaged house
Mr William Robinson, landlord	Norfolk Hotel, Mowbray Street	Portion of the hotel blown down, suffered fractured skull and scalp wounds
Mr Edward Learoyd, Secretary of the Pharmaceutical Society	Landsdowne Road (dwelling-house connected with branch shop owned by Mr W V Radley)	Chimney pots fell on to house
William Whitehead, engine tenter		Messrs Matthewman and Sons, cutlery manufacturers, Milton Street Averted disaster in putting out a fire
Mr Freckingham, mortar mills	Willey Street, Wicker	Chimney fell through the mortar mill roof
Thomas Walker, worker		Messrs Cooper and Son, Clog Manufacturers, West Bar. Injured by falling beams caused by falling chimney
Mr J Blyde, heavy steel toy manufacturer	Hallcar Works, Spital Hill	Chimney fell on adjacent file cutters' workshop
Samuel Hattersley, striker at Messrs Thos Firth and Sons, Norfolk Works, Saville Street		Slight injuries
William Kirby John Thurston, engineman John Broad, cutler William Broad, cutler William Marks		Present at the Trippet Lane disaster when 6 men were killed when 40ft high chimney fell destroying 8 cutlery workshops
Ralph Kendall, labourer in the fettlers' shop of The Crucible Steel Foundry, Newhall Road, owned Mr Robert Hadfield, of Ashdell Road, Broomhill		Warned his workmates of danger
Mr Wright, plumber	Highfield Police Station	A block of six shops in course of construction by Mr Wright were partially unroofed and part fell into the Police Station yard and into the rooms
Inspector and Mrs Bradbury,		Escaped without injury when masonry fell into bedroom whilst he was in bed
Mr J C Wing, cutlery manager	Sharrow Lane	Escaped injury through falling masonry
Mr W Shaw, woollen draper of High Street	Sharrow Lane	ditto
Mrs M Wells	Sharrow Lane	ditto
Mr Geo Wolstenholme	Priory Terrace, facing Sharrow Lane	ditto
Mr Slagg, occupier of farm	Sheffield Park	Stacks stripped of covering
Mr Wigfull occupier of farm	Sheffield Park	Stacks stripped of covering
Mr Butcher	Lees Hall, Norton	Stacks, house and outbuilding have greatly suffered
Mr George Sampson	Beauchief Abbey	Oat stack weighing 20-30 tons was lifted from its brandreth and carried about the yard.
Mr M Wilkinson, farmer	Myrtle Hill	Stacks disappeared
Mr Darlow	Walkley	A row of his houses much damaged
Mrs Garrett	Rawson Springs, King James Street, Walkley	Chimney came down and carried the roof with it. She was much annoyed as she had just "cleaned down" for Christmas.
Mrs Ann Hawe, an elderly woman and mother of the person who attends to the Methodist New Connexion Chapel	Walkley	Blown off her feet and narrowly escaped being hit by a large falling stone from the Chapel's chimney.
Mrs Allen	Cromwell Street	Narrow escape from falling masonry
Mr Chadwick, druggist	Opposite the new Board School in Walkley	Narrow escape from falling masonry
Mr Councillor Searle	Birkendale	Much damage to house
Mr and Mrs Hibbert, attend to the house of Mr Wigan Burton Road, adjoining the brewery	Burton Road	Miraculous escape from falling masonry
Mr Ratlidge of South Sea Hotel, Broomhill	Tapton Hill	Wheatstack blow about in all directions
Mr Moses Ellis, workshop owner, workshop used by Mr Pitt of Waingate	Albert Road	Top storey of workshop carried into a field at the back
Mr and Mrs Hearnshawe	Woodhill, Grimesthorpe	Narrow escape from falling masonry
Mr Veall	Queen's terrace	Damage to chimney stack
Mr Bassett	Ranmoor	Chimney stack fell through roof
Mr Wilson, Surgeon	Glossop Road	Slates and tiles lost
Mr Haigh, bus proprietor	Glossop Road	Slates and tiles lost
Mr Arden	Glossop Road	Garden wall hurled down
Mrs Rodgers	Egerton House, Glossop Road	Wall and pallisading fell down
Mr J Dyson	The Woodlands, Pitsmoor	Chimney stack fell through roof
Mr Taylor	Buckingham Road	Debris fell into bedroom, bedroom floor collapsed into room below and ruined the furniture, no-one hurt

n.b. There is much more detail of damage to property - I have just extracted the parts that mention named individuals. Karen Turner, 22 November 1999

Data transcribed from:
Sheffield and Rotherham Independent.
dated 17 December 1873
Transcribed by
Karen Turner ©2000