Forums Forums Wirral History : Chasing the Past Wirral History The Big Freeze of 1963

Some interesting vehicles in this. Old ladies wearing those very 'practical' galoshes over their shoes. No central heating in those days, and by jingo....the days when trees were pruned !!

The second vid is of a train journey during the same winter. Right up your street Pinz

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Does Pinz love brass monkey weather Granny?

Way before my time but I bet the schools and other public institutions did not close down......

Thanks for sharing those clips Granny. Not seen the first one before - fascinating indeed. The latter one is a favourite of mine. The days when steam was still around but being given the heave-ho by new fangled diesels. Very atmospheric stuff. Not a high vis jacket in sight! The cloth cap was de rigueur, and gloves were for wimps!

@ Snowhite.. Not very much... Things tend to drop off !!
@ Rude.. You are so right. From memory, few schools closed, in the Prenton area anyway. We were frozen up at home for quite a while. Mum put buckets of snow in the old gas boiler in the wash house to melt for drinking etc. Happy days (?) I remember the long period of very low temps rather than the snow. Just depended on where you lived I suppose.

I remember 1963 well. I was commuting between Harrow and Handley Page, Radlett on a Lambretta scooter.

Interesting electric warming pan thingy at 7.21 in the first vid. Orchestral soundtrack way over the top, but footage good!

Brilliant footage - thanks for posting it. The winter of 1962-63 still makes me shiver when I think of it.

As I remember, the temperature dropped below freezing on Boxing Day and stayed below freezing until mid-March.

Everywhere was covered in a deep blanket of snow. In the towns, it was bad enough, but in the remoter parts of the West Country it was truly awful - there were drifts up to 40ft deep.

One particular memory is of two kids in school hauling a crate of milk into the classroom (we still got free milk in those days) and it was just a solid lump of ice. It never thawed out in time to drink it.

As has been mentioned, few houses had central heating and it was a real battle to keep warm. But you could always take a grill plate out of the fireside oven and wrap it in a towel to heat up your bed.

And, as kids, we loved the snow and ice - making slides in the back entries and having snowball fights.

The thing is, no one made a fuss about it. It was just something you had to put up with. Everyone got on with it and disruption was kept to a minimum. We never missed a day's school and my father - who was a labourer working on the roads - never missed a day's work.

By contrast today, when the first flake of snow falls, there's 24-hour rolling news coverage, crisis talk, Government ministers all over the airwaves, school closures, traffic chaos, general panic and everyone stays at home.

Another thing about the Big Freeze of '63 was having a dirty great welding generator (I think they were loaned by Lairds) at the end of our road and Woodchurch Road. This was to warm up the main supply pipe under the pavement to get the water running again. Pipes were iron or lead in those days of course. Heavy cable the length of the road connected to the nearest hydrant. Return circuit was the pipe back to the genny. From memory, it DID work - then re-froze a day or two later.

Does anyone else remember this? It wouldn't work these days of course as A) most pipes are plastic. B) the heavy welding cable would "vanish" within the hour and C) The H&S Stazi would crap themselves!

was living in kent then as a nipper can remember the snow over my head where it had drifted by the back door. We didn't care as kids then-- but maybe our mums and dads were worried about freezing pipes etc.

Yes sure brings back memories especially the railway one, going up to Glasgow to join a ship, all those snow covered fields and frosted windows.

By heck, some memories there.
I was commuting from Woodside to Carlett Park, Eastham each weekday on a James 198cc 2-stroke bike. No helmet in those days just an ex-USA Korean war fuzzy lined cap with ear flaps. Was a bit cool but we only came off once so far as I remember.

I can remember chunks of ice at the edge of the Mersey some days, all the Bidston Moss streams frozen solid for weeks and weeks and folk walking across the "Triangle" pond.

Snod

As Pinz says I don't remember many schools closing. I'd just started at Bidston Avenue School, and I remember trekking to school every morning with my mum through snow up to my knees. I had wellies on of course, but because I was in the Infants Dept long trousers were not permitted, so boys had to make do with shorts and bare legs! At least the girls could wear thick woolly tights under their skirts...

Working on the build of a frigate { HMS Ajax} in Lairds 1962/63 and it was more than cold. Walking to work each morning from Larch road.

I remember tobogganing at the bottom of Vaughn and Dalmorton Rd

down to the icy prom. Looking back, could have easily gone through

the railing into the beckoning Mersey. A few of my 9 lives used

up in those days.

Skidding around every possible corner when going to school.

Wellington boots, double socks and pain like hell when trying to defrost toes. ......and those damn paraffin heaters. Always the niff of paraffin heaters! Plus frozen water pipes and bursts for many. Disaster !

It should have served you well Snowshoes, considering your present habitat