Who was around in the 62/63 winter

[Yellowbelly]

I admit it, I love cold and snow. Just a child at heart. The winter of 1962/63 will always be with me. But unless you're 43 you weren't even alive.

It was my first year at work in Lincoln, my abiding memory is of the Brayford Pool near the city centre being frozen for weeks, we went for a stroll on it during lunch break.

Anyone else like to admit remembering those days, were you at school or work, and what is your clearest memory ?

And if anyone has memories of 1947, share them. I was alive but in my pram.

[Candice]

I can just about remember the 63 winter. Was very small at the time but can remember living in London and being unable to open our front door without what seemed like a mountain of snow falling into the hall. It seemed as if the snow was up to my waist but that's maybe cause I was so small at the time. One other abiding memory I have of that winter was the dead sparrows littering the streets - they literally fell out of the sky. I also remember having painfully cold feet for what seemed like weeks on end as my mum made me wear welly boots. As for 47 - forget it I wasn't even born.

I also remember that any water left in the sink overnight froze over, gigantic icicles hanging from the eaves and thick ice on the inside of the windows - sometimes all day

Edited November 8, 2006 by Candice

[ukmoose]

Well, yes. I was around in that winter. It's hard to separate out though from other winters in the early sixties as I was only 6 or 7 at the time and every winter then seemed to be snowy and cold (which it obviously wasn't).

I can certainly remember huge snow drifts from around that time ( having to dig the snow away from doorways just to get out in the morning and the same for getting my dad's Ford popular out of the garage), and absloutely freezing cold dark moonlit nights. (Fewer street lamps, less traffic, deep snowfields and full moons- only the latter now remains).

House insulation was not great in those days and icicles the size of drainpipes used to hand from the eaves and window sills. We used to throw snowballs at them to try and knock them down. Sledging down the old clay tip hills and right across the thick ice on the deep clay holes - not advisable I know buit we didn't know any better then and the ice was thick; chipping the ice off the inside of the windows when we woke up was also great fun.

My memories are probably a little mixed but some must be of 62/3 as I can remember so much snow and frozen vistas. Happy days....

(Not around in '47 I'm afraid but my old uncle used to swear it was the coldest winter he ever knew and he was born in 1908)!

Moose

[carinthian]

Hi Yellowbelly,

I was 12 years old on my dads farm in Cheshire, 100m asl. The lane to my school bus stop was cut out of huge snow drifts by the tractor. When I returned from school its was filled in again. My memory was of intense cold and blowing snow for weeks on end. Unreal. Have never been the same since, it blew my mind away !

C

[Terminal Moraine]

I was 10 in 1963, it was that winter, along with the tremendous gale in February 1962 which started me keeping weather records.

My most vivid memories of the 1963 winter include the following; the headmaster at our local primary school calling a few of us older boys shortly before school started at 9.0am, and taking us to see the Six's thermometer which hung on the north facing wall of the canteen. It was reading 8f

(-13.3c ) and this was on an exposed hill top, not in any sort of frost hollow, the minimum had been 5f (-15.0c ). He was wise enough to know that the exposure of the thermometer meant that it was probably reading a couple of degrees higher than it would have been in a standard location and mentioned that we might never again see such a low temperature in our lifetimes ( I was very impressed with that ).

My mother finding a Robin at the bird table which could not stand up or fly. She brought it inside and found it had two balls of ice encasing its feet, each ball about as big as a large marble. It took about 10 minutes to thaw it out in a bowl of warm water, after which it was fine.

The water pipes being frozen solid every morning and my mother having to spend a couple of hours slowly thawing them out, hoping the pipes wouldn't burst ( they didn't ).

A glass of water I had by my bed having half an inch of ice on it in the morning, obviously this was in the days before central heating, when only the kitchen and the front room were heated. Getting into bed at night was like crawling into the 'fridge', except we didn't have one of those either.

I've lived through it as a child, now I want to repeat the experience as an adult.

T.M

[carinthian]

I was 10 in 1963, it was that winter, along with the tremendous gale in February 1962 which started me keeping weather records.

My most vivid memories of the 1963 winter include the following; the headmaster at our local primary school calling a few of us older boys shortly before school started at 9.0am, and taking us to see the Six's thermometer which hung on the north facing wall of the canteen. It was reading 8f

(-13.3c ) and this was on an exposed hill top, not in any sort of frost hollow, the minimum had been 5f (-15.0c ). He was wise enough to know that the exposure of the thermometer meant that it was probably reading a couple of degrees higher than it would have been in a standard location and mentioned that we might never again see such a low temperature in our lifetimes ( I was very impressed with that ).

My mother finding a Robin at the bird table which could not stand up or fly. She brought it inside and found it had two balls of ice encasing its feet, each ball about as big as a large marble. It took about 10 minutes to thaw it out in a bowl of warm water, after which it was fine.

The water pipes being frozen solid every morning and my mother having to spend a couple of hours slowly thawing them out, hoping the pipes wouldn't burst ( they didn't ).

A glass of water I had by my bed having half an inch of ice on it in the morning, obviously this was in the days before central heating, when only the kitchen and the front room were heated. Getting into bed at night was like crawling into the 'fridge', except we didn't have one of those either.

I've lived through it as a child, now I want to repeat the experience as an adult.

T.M

Great Post TM,

I did remember driving over the Woodhead Pass with my folks in the February of 63 and seeing 30 foot snowdrifts on eitherside of the road. When we got to the Barnsley side all the roads had craters caused by the prolonged severe frosts day and night. A repeat of that winters would send this site crazy !

C

[Candice]

I was 10 in 1963, it was that winter, along with the tremendous gale in February 1962 which started me keeping weather records.

My most vivid memories of the 1963 winter include the following; the headmaster at our local primary school calling a few of us older boys shortly before school started at 9.0am, and taking us to see the Six's thermometer which hung on the north facing wall of the canteen. It was reading 8f

(-13.3c ) and this was on an exposed hill top, not in any sort of frost hollow, the minimum had been 5f (-15.0c ). He was wise enough to know that the exposure of the thermometer meant that it was probably reading a couple of degrees higher than it would have been in a standard location and mentioned that we might never again see such a low temperature in our lifetimes ( I was very impressed with that ).

My mother finding a Robin at the bird table which could not stand up or fly. She brought it inside and found it had two balls of ice encasing its feet, each ball about as big as a large marble. It took about 10 minutes to thaw it out in a bowl of warm water, after which it was fine.

The water pipes being frozen solid every morning and my mother having to spend a couple of hours slowly thawing them out, hoping the pipes wouldn't burst ( they didn't ).

A glass of water I had by my bed having half an inch of ice on it in the morning, obviously this was in the days before central heating, when only the kitchen and the front room were heated. Getting into bed at night was like crawling into the 'fridge', except we didn't have one of those either.

I've lived through it as a child, now I want to repeat the experience as an adult.

T.M

Superb post - brings it all back as though it was yesterday but I don't think I want a repeat now - can you imagine the media hype -not to mention the traffic chaos!

[carinthian]

I can just about remember the 63 winter. Was very small at the time but can remember living in London and being unable to open our front door without what seemed like a mountain of snow falling into the hall. It seemed as if the snow was up to my waist but that's maybe cause I was so small at the time. One other abiding memory I have of that winter was the dead sparrows littering the streets - they literally fell out of the sky. I also remember having painfully cold feet for what seemed like weeks on end as my mum made me wear welly boots. As for 47 - forget it I wasn't even born.

I also remember that any water left in the sink overnight froze over, gigantic icicles hanging from the eaves and thick ice on the inside of the windows - sometimes all day

Hi Candice,

Only John Holmes was around in 1947 ! Nice report there.

C

[Nick F]

Some great accounts here so far, certainly priceless memories of winters old that no amount of money can buy. Born in the mid 70s I only recall the severe cold spells of the early to mid 80s which were much less in duration and in the relative comfort of the late 20th century.

Keep those stories coming ...

[Coopsy]

My parents tell me stories of 62/63 and I sit amazed as they described everything as above. I can only remember Jan 1987 as something comparable on a smaller, shorter scale, with 2 1/2 level feet of snow, icicles hanging from the guttering that were so long you couldnt open your upstairs windows, every man in the close getting out and shovelling the snow from the road so our parents could get to work

I would loved to have witnessed first hand 62/63 for the sheer intensity and length of time it stayed

[kar999]

I remember waking up to deep snow and it coming over the tops of my wellies walking to school...

I also remember a kind of igloo that was built up the north-facing corner of the junior school playground wall out of the snow. It was there for weeks and was regularly repaired and rebuild and used as a den until the headmaster put salt from the school kitchen onto it to melt it.

The headmaster was a bit of a killjoy. You’d spend all break time getting a perfect 50 yard+ ice slide in the playground polished like glass to perfection and whilst you were in lessons he’d salt it up.

I blame him for today’s nanny state. Going I have a problem over tit as you skimmed across a frosty playground never did me any harm. Though I do recall a few, who didn’t have the knack, did lose their front milk teeth!!

[carinthian]

Casting my memory back again, I remember watching the news ( in black and white ) that showed ice floes out into Liverpool Bay and yes ice breakers on the Manchester ship canal !

C

[TheGardener]

Well I was 8 and remember dad digging out the front door and the back door snow was above the ground floor windows It seemed that we sledged for weeks . The one place you didnt want to go into was the bathroom it was so cold. I remember That we had the fire in the living room alight from October round till spring and the loft being open so that the pipes and the tank didnt freeze didnt like going upstairs to bed always thought that something might come out of the loft. All the washing that mum put out to dry in the cold sunshine only to find it frozen solid and having to put it in front of the fire to thaw out

One thing that I wish I had was photos seems strange now but if the cat breaks a wisker thes somone in the family that has taken a picture of this but an event like that all that was around was news reels and the odd Paper report.

[carinthian]

Well I was 8 and remember dad digging out the front door and the back door snow was above the ground floor windows It seemed that we sledged for weeks . The one place you didnt want to go into was the bathroom it was so cold. I remember That we had the fire in the living room alight from October round till spring and the loft being open so that the pipes and the tank didnt freeze didnt like going upstairs to bed always thought that something might come out of the loft. All the washing that mum put out to dry in the cold sunshine only to find it frozen solid and having to put it in front of the fire to thaw out

One thing that I wish I had was photos seems strange now but if the cat breaks a wisker thes somone in the family that has taken a picture of this but an event like that all that was around was news reels and the odd Paper report.

Hello the Gardener,

Yes, living on the farm we always had a big burning fire and lashing of hot water. Come bedtime I filled my hot water bottle and jumped snuggly into bed, only to find in the morning that the condensation had frozen solid on the inside windows. Hated making that icy trip to the bathroom.

C

[BARRY]

I remember waiting for the school bus which didn't come, we had icicles hanging from our hair, this was from the snow that melted on our skin, the back of the house was one big snowdrift from the garden to the roof, my sister was born in the middle of the winter, when the midwife came we had to help dad push her car up the street, then aged nine years old,i had to go up to the local shops in a howling blizzard just to get midwife 10 parkdrive plain out of the ciggi machine at 11.00pm, god how times have changed

[Yellowbelly]

Wonderful memories, it's great to have the personal touch on that unforgettable time, you've really brought it to life again.

I remember being on the chalet roofs at Butlins, Skegness in a blizzard, helping measure up for some re-roofing, I never expected to be that cold again..............and until December 1981, I wasn't. But that's another story.

And also thanks to whoever moved the topic to where it would be seen.

[Guest Viking141]

Yes, but only just! I was born during that winter! Mum almost didnt make it to the maternity hospital due to the roads being blocked with snow and the ambulance having to be dug out of drifts twice on the way.

[MAF]

Born in July 62 so no memory of the winter. but my mum has photos of my elder brother waist deep in the snow. her memories of it are fading now, but the recalling of how cold it was and the depths of snow always make me wish i was around to enjoy it

[mushymanrob]

I admit it, I love cold and snow. Just a child at heart. The winter of 1962/63 will always be with me. But unless you're 43 you weren't even alive.

It was my first year at work in Lincoln, my abiding memory is of the Brayford Pool near the city centre being frozen for weeks, we went for a stroll on it during lunch break.

Anyone else like to admit remembering those days, were you at school or work, and what is your clearest memory ?

And if anyone has memories of 1947, share them. I was alive but in my pram.

erm.... are you the 'yellowbelly'? youd recognise my avatar if you are!...

i know mick n russ, they are good pals of mine at the derby md club.

i was a nipper in that winter and was very ill for most of it, i do remember the snow though.. vaguely

[Mammatus]

Not around at the time, but have heard it was chilly with some wintery showers

Mammatus

[drgl]

May bring back some memories for you

My dad's van on the Shropshire hills during that winter-his job was to deliver animal feed!

[Yellowbelly]

erm.... are you the 'yellowbelly'? youd recognise my avatar if you are!...

No, I'm not THE yellowbelly, just A yellowbelly as is anyone born in Lincolnshire, though some would say only if you're from the fen country where the skies are wide and the east wind goes straight through, though not as often as it used to.

Edit - drgl - amazing pictures, thanks for sharing them.

Edited November 9, 2006 by Yellowbelly

[drgl]

Sigh, if only we could have snow like that.

LAST winter on the Shropshire hills!! (12th Of March 2006)

.JPG" border="0" class="linked-image" />

[colboy]

I was 10 in 1963, it was that winter, along with the tremendous gale in February 1962 which started me keeping weather records.

My most vivid memories of the 1963 winter include the following; the headmaster at our local primary school calling a few of us older boys shortly before school started at 9.0am, and taking us to see the Six's thermometer which hung on the north facing wall of the canteen. It was reading 8f

(-13.3c ) and this was on an exposed hill top, not in any sort of frost hollow, the minimum had been 5f (-15.0c ). He was wise enough to know that the exposure of the thermometer meant that it was probably reading a couple of degrees higher than it would have been in a standard location and mentioned that we might never again see such a low temperature in our lifetimes ( I was very impressed with that ).

My mother finding a Robin at the bird table which could not stand up or fly. She brought it inside and found it had two balls of ice encasing its feet, each ball about as big as a large marble. It took about 10 minutes to thaw it out in a bowl of warm water, after which it was fine.

The water pipes being frozen solid every morning and my mother having to spend a couple of hours slowly thawing them out, hoping the pipes wouldn't burst ( they didn't ).

A glass of water I had by my bed having half an inch of ice on it in the morning, obviously this was in the days before central heating, when only the kitchen and the front room were heated. Getting into bed at night was like crawling into the 'fridge', except we didn't have one of those either.

I've lived through it as a child, now I want to repeat the experience as an adult.

T.M

[charlton north-downs]

Hi Folks

I was seven in living in Uxbridge Middx. The snow was incredible and every day I would have to wipe the ice off the inside of my bedroom window

My dad would light a fire with newspaper and we would stay in bed until the fire was lit. Two feet of snow in the garden for almost six weeks.

The milk being delivered always had the top off and the milk was frozen inside. Woke up on my birthday in early April and looked out the window to six inches of snow and my parents saying "oh no not again-the snow soon melted that day.