Great Storm of 1824

Last updated

The Great Storm of 1824 (or Great Gale) was a hurricane force wind and storm surge that affected the south coast of England from 22 November 1824. [1]

At Sidmouth, low-lying houses along the Esplanade were inundated, and cottages at the exposed west end were destroyed. The 40 feet (12 m) sea-stack at Chit Rock was destroyed. [2]

It destroyed the esplanade at Weymouth; it broke across Chesil Beach and the Fleet Lagoon, almost destroying the villages of Fleet and Chiswell. [3] [4] In Lyme Regis it topped the Cobb, and destroyed about 90m of its length. [1]

The ferry between the Isle of Portland and the mainland was washed away. [4]

The quays at Weymouth were overcome and most properties on the seafront and much of the lower part of the town were flooded by the deluge. The pier at the entrance of the harbour also sustained considerable damage, whilst boats and vessels were carried into the streets by the waves, where they drifted helplessly. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lyme Regis</span> Coastal town in Dorset, England

Lyme Regis is a town in west Dorset, England, 25 miles (40 km) west of Dorchester and east of Exeter. Sometimes dubbed the "Pearl of Dorset", it lies by the English Channel at the Dorset–Devon border. It has noted fossils in cliffs and beaches on the Jurassic Coast, a World Heritage Site and heritage coast. The harbour wall, known as The Cobb, appears in Jane Austen's novel Persuasion, the John Fowles novel The French Lieutenant's Woman and the 1981 film of that name, partly shot in the town. A former mayor and MP was Admiral Sir George Somers, who founded the English colonial settlement of Somers Isles, now Bermuda, where Lyme Regis is twinned with St George's. In July 2015, Lyme Regis joined Jamestown, Virginia in a Historic Atlantic Triangle with St George's. The 2011 Census gave the urban area a population of 4,712, estimated at 4,805 in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jurassic Coast</span> World Heritage Site on the coast of southern England

The Jurassic Coast is a World Heritage Site on the English Channel coast of southern England. It stretches from Exmouth in East Devon to Studland Bay in Dorset, a distance of about 96 miles (154 km), and was inscribed on the World Heritage List in mid-December 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chesil Beach</span> Shingle beach in Dorset, England

Chesil Beach in Dorset, England is one of three major shingle beach structures in Britain. Its name is derived from the Old English ceosel or cisel, meaning "gravel" or "shingle". It runs for a length of 29 kilometres (18 mi) from West Bay to the Isle of Portland and in places is up to 15 metres (50 ft) high and 200 metres (660 ft) wide. Behind the beach is the Fleet, a shallow tidal lagoon. Both are part of the Jurassic Coast and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and together form an SSSI and Ramsar Site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South West Coast Path</span> Long-distance footpath in England

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sidmouth</span> Town in Devon, England

Sidmouth is a town on the English Channel in Devon, South West England, 14 miles (23 km) southeast of Exeter. With a population of 12,569 in 2011, it is a tourist resort and a gateway to the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. A large part of the town has been designated a conservation area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seaton, Devon</span> Town in Devon, England

Seaton is a seaside town, fishing harbour and civil parish in East Devon on the south coast of England, between Axmouth and Beer. It faces onto Lyme Bay and is on the Dorset and East Devon Coast Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. A sea wall provides access to the mostly shingle beach stretching for about a mile, and a small harbour, located mainly in the Axmouth area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melcombe Regis</span> Human settlement in England

Melcombe Regis is an area of Weymouth in Dorset, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lyme Bay</span> Area of the English Channel

Lyme Bay is an area of the English Channel off the south coast of England. The south western counties of Devon and Dorset front onto the bay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fleet, Dorset</span> Human settlement in England

Fleet is a small, scattered village and civil parish in south Dorset, England, situated approximately 2.5 miles (4.0 km) west of Weymouth. It consists of the small settlements of East Fleet, West Fleet, Fleet House, and Fleet Common, all of which are close to the shore of The Fleet, a brackish lagoon behind Chesil Beach. The name "Fleet" is derived from fleot, Old English for an inlet or estuary. Dorset County Council estimated that the population of the civil parish was 60 in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Somers</span> English admiral

Sir George Somers was an English privateer and naval hero, knighted for his achievements and the Admiral of the Virginia Company of London. He achieved renown as part of an expedition led by Sir Amyas Preston that plundered Caracas and Santa Ana de Coro in 1595, during the undeclared Anglo-Spanish War. He is remembered today as the founder of the English colony of Bermuda, also known as the Somers Isles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Weymouth</span> Battle during the First English Civil War

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weymouth, Dorset</span> Town in Dorset, England

Weymouth is a sea-side town and civil parish in the Dorset district, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, on the English Channel coast of England. Situated on a sheltered bay at the mouth of the River Wey, 11 km (7 mi) south of the county town of Dorchester, Weymouth had a population of 53,427 in 2021. It is the third-largest settlement in Dorset after Bournemouth and Poole. The greater Weymouth urban area has a population of 72,802.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ferry Bridge, Dorset</span>

Ferry Bridge is at the beginning of the causeway to the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England, and is the point at which the Fleet lagoon joins Portland Harbour. It is situated several hundred metres south of Portland's boundary with the village of Wyke Regis, Weymouth. To the west of Ferry Bridge is the start of The Fleet, which is an internationally important nature reserve that extends to Abbotsbury Swannery, while to the east is Portland Harbour. Along the harbour side is Smallmouth Beach. The only road between Portland and the Mainland passes across Ferry Bridge.

George Roberts was an English schoolmaster and antiquary.

The siege of Lyme Regis was an eight-week blockade during the First English Civil War. The port of Lyme Regis, in Dorset, was considered to be of strategic importance because of its position along the main shipping route between Bristol and the English Channel. Thomas Ceeley and Robert Blake commanded the town's Parliamentarian defences during the siege, which was laid by Prince Maurice between 20 April and 16 June 1644.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holy Trinity Church, Fleet</span> Church in Dorset, England

Holy Trinity Church is a Church of England church in Fleet, Dorset, England. It was built in 1827–29, replacing an earlier parish church which was partially destroyed during the Great Storm of 1824. Holy Trinity remains in religious use and has been Grade I Listed since 1956.

The Sidmouth Harbour Railway was a short-lived attempt in the 1830s to create a harbour in the bay at Sidmouth, Devon on the south coast of England. To enable its construction a railway was built along the seafront and then via a tunnel in the cliff east of the town towards natural deposits at Hook Ebb. Only a few traces of the railway and tunnel remain today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jurassic Coaster</span>

The Jurassic Coaster is a bus service operated by the Weymouth branch of First Hampshire & Dorset, running around the Jurassic coastline of the county of Dorset. It features five routes, stretching from Axminster in the west to Poole in the east, with one of the routes in TripAdvisor's 2018 poll of most scenic bus routes coming in 12th place.

References

  1. 1 2 Thea Hawksworth (2016). "Lyme's History in Objects" (PDF). Lyme Regis Museum. Retrieved 2016-09-11.
  2. West, Ian (2 June 2017). "Geology of Sidmouth and Ladram Bay, Devon". University of Southampton. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
  3. "Fleet" . Retrieved 2016-09-11.
  4. 1 2 "The Great Gale of 1824" . Retrieved 2016-09-11.
  5. "The Great Gale of 1824". Dorset Life. 2013. Retrieved 2016-09-11.