The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1838-07-10 00:00:00

ROCHDALE AND THE NEIGHBOURHOOD,

On Wednesday last, this town was visited by one of the
most terrible and destructive thunder storms which ever hap-
pened in this part of the country. The morning was ex-
tremely warm, and the atmosphere close and sultry. The
stillness of the surrounding scene foreboded a tempest near
at hand. About two o'clock in the afternoon, the most vivid
flashes of lightning began to dart in quick succession from
the dark clouds which obscured the face of the sky. Soon
after, the rain began to fall in torrents, mingled with bail
and large irregular pieces of ice. Some of the hail stones
measured 11 inches in diameter, which would be nearly tour
inches in circumference. The sceptical may have some no-
tion of their size, when they are informed of the damage done
to the factories in the town and neighbourhood. Messrs.
Lomax had 800 panes of glass broken in their factory, the
chief part of which were sky-lights; Mr. Henry Kersall,

,
1,850 panes in his factory, warehouse, and greenhouse; all
the sky-lights, and many windows, in the new mill of Mr.
Brierly, were broken ; Mr. King, in Oldham-road, who had
an extensive looin-shop attached to his factory, had 3000
panes broken; and so on, in proportion to the extent of his
property, has every person suffered by this destructive storm.
Several buildings were struck by the lightning. Mr. Smith's
chimney, Cheetham-street, had an opening about four inches
wide cut in it, without displacing the adjoining bricks. The
belfry of Mr. Howard's factory, immediately adjoining, was
struck by the electric fluid, but without doing any material
damage, except displacing a few bricks and stones' A pigeon,
when on the wing, was struck by the lightning, and fell life-
less into the street.. Tlie chimney at Messrs. Petrie's iron
works received some damage from the lightning. But the
worst yet remains behind. The storm had not raged an hour
before the river rose to an alarming, height. The Spodden,
a small rivulet, which takes its rise between Whitworth and
Bacup, and meets the river Roach about 200 yardS below the
town, bore every thing down before it tiv three o'clock. So
sudden was its rise, that it enclosed half; dozen children and
some men, who had gone into the field to watch it, before
they were aware of their perilous situation.. Retreat was irri-
possible; the field was surrounded with water, and the ground
upon which they stood every moment became narrower and
narrower, till, at last, all was one sheet of water. The little
urchins- had now retreated into a thorn hedge, where their
situation became truly painful. Every moment they were
expected to be washed by the raging element from this last.
place of refuge. The most lively interest was'excited for their
fate by hundreds of spectators who witnessed the scene.
Though property of every description came floating down the
flood—barrels, planks, trees torn up by the roots, wool
pieces, carts, skips, timber, &c., yet every one seemed ab-
sorbed! in the fate of these children. The water was at its

highest a little before four o'clock, when it began to subside.
At half-past four, a man plunged in on horseback, and
brought the children to land by two at a time. The water,
at the deepest part he had to cross, might he about a yard
and a half. Every bridge from Whitworth to Rochdale has
been carried away by the flood. Messrs. Tweedale, at Broad-
ley, have suffered considerably from the destructive effects of
'the flood Their dye-works are situated on a brook called
the Healey Hall Brook, which, shortly before one o'clock on
Wednesday, contained scarcely any water. About one
o'clock, however, the storm commenced with most terrific
claps of thunder, and fearfully vivid lightning. It continued
till about half-past two with but little intermission, accom-
panied by a storm of hail and pieces of ice of extraordinary
size, which speedily destroyed all the windows in the upper
floors of the works. The weight and pressure of the flood
burst the bank of one of the lodges, and the whole force of
the swollen stream coining against the gas-house of the works,
which was a small stone building, carried by an arch over the
brook; and situated about a hundred yards higher than the
dyehouse, actually uplifted it, and bore the building—con-
taming three retorts, weighing from 21 to 30 cwt. each—down
the stream, and upon its surface, till it came in contact with
the upper end of the dyehouse, which it struck with such force
as to drive in part of the wall, thus giving entrance to the
flood. The water speedily covered the lower part of the build-
ing, carrying all before it; and when it forced it way through
the lower end of the building, it swept away before it about
130 bales and packs of wool, some of them weighing seven
cwt. each. Mr. Jelin Tweedale, his son, and eight or ten of
the hands, were some time in a situation of considerable peril.
They were in the drying stove, whence they made their way
to a room, and Mr.iTweedale broke the window and called
for help. A number of the hands outside at length succeeded,
by means of planks, ropes, &c. in bringing them all safe out
of the drying stove; but when they landed them, they were
neatly up to the neck in water. Four horses, in a stable,
were with difficulty rescued; a man broke a window, and
when he entered, he found the animals up to the shoulders in
water. In a shippon adjoing this stable, a little bu, son of
'the cowkeeper, had crept for safety. He was heard-scream-
ing, and some persons who were going to his assistance saw
hint attempt to catch at a pole ; but he was immediately
swept down the stream, and drowned. His body has not yet
been found. A large cart at the bottom end -of the ware-
house was swept away ; a large boiler of ten horses' power,
which stood outside the warehouse, was also carried away by
the flood, and a stack of between 70 and 80 tons of hay, be-
neath a French barn. In the smithy of the establishment

nothing was left but the stithy. A great quantity (probably
;;0 tons) of sawn inch and inch and half boards for flooring,
which were piled in two large steers, were entirely swept
away. Such were the force of the flood t hat must of the bales
and packs of wool were burst ; and we believe only two or
three whole bales have been recovered, and a very small
quantity of the timber. About a hundred of the hands were
engaged during Thursday in collecting the scattered property
of their employers, but with little success. A gentleman
named Cross, who was fishing in the brook, before the storm
arose, was detained five hours before he could cross it; and
he states, that the water rose at one point not less than four
yards in twenty minutes! The old mill at Healey Hail
Bottoms, which was used for finishing flannels, is stated to
have been entirely carried away, as well as a number of small
bridges across the streams in that neighbourhood. At the
.new mill of Messrs. James Schofield and Sons, at Buckley,
near Rochdale, ou the Hamerbrook, all the panes in the
upper floor of the mill were broken., and a large, long, thick
wall was washed down. At Belfield Hall, near Rochdale, at the
print-works of Messrs. Benecke & Co. upwards of 200 panes of
glass were broken by the hail, and part of the lodge bank
was washed away. Several parts of walls were washed down
at Makeant Mill, about three miles below Rochdale. At the

fulling mill at Mean wood, belonging to Mr. James. Gibson,
a great quantity of pieces and dyewood were carried away by
the flood. At Spotland Bridge, 200 yards lower on the seine
river, the whole of Mr. Whitaker's premises were swept away
within less than two hours from the commencement of the
storm. Three men stood for a long time on the steam en-
gine, 'surrounded by water. Mr. Whitaker is the greatest
sufferer in the neighbourhood : his dvehouse, his warehouse,
his stove, or dryhouse (the building where the wet flannels
are dried after being dyed), his all, the labour of a life, are a
wreck. This is not all" 400 pieces of flannels, some in a
finished. others in an unfinished state, together with a quan-
tity of wool and indigo, and other dye-woods, amounting to
£BOO. were borne along by the raging torrent. Some cot-
tages adjoining these premises had the chairs and other fur-
niture driven through the windows by the flood. Above Mr.
Whittaker's dyehouse, a large and uncommonly firm bridge,
of two arches, was nearly swept away. At this place the
mischief was considerably increased by the passage being
blockaded up with large trees, which the water had brought
down from Healey Hall Many barrels were washed away
from the Spotland Brewery. Messrs. fi,. and Win. Turner's
mill, at Black Pits, about three miles front Rochdale, has
also received considerable damage from the flood. Many
others have had the lowest room in the mill or factory laid
under water, and
.the machinery spoiled. In numerous in-
stances, mill darns and wears have been borne down by the
flood, and fields of hay grass laid under water, and covered
with sand or mud. Nothing like the extent of the injury
is yet ascertained. Several lives have been hist: At a little
distance from this place three men were caught in a coal pit,
and had not time to escape from a watery grave. They re-
main yet buried in the pit. By three o'clock on the Thurs-
day morning, several cart load of pieces, wool, tubs, barrels,
trees, and other articles were gathered up in the fields, near
the Gas Works, which had been covered with water. Many
of the pieces were torn into shreds, and so injured as to be of
little value. The damage done within a few miles of Roch-
dale cannot he estimated at much less than £B9OO. It is
somewhat, "remarkable that, at two miles distant, on the
southern side of the town, scarcely any rain fell; though the
'streets Wire six or seven inches deep.in water, and Imd alt
the appearance of a river for nearly an hour. The greatest
part of the rain fell between Whitworth and Rochdale. At
Lit deborough, Heywood, and Middleton, there was a scarcely
a shower.