Sources for historical weather

[MythicalMarian]

I don't know whether any of our experts can help with this one - I've Googled till I'm blue in the face - but is there any way to find out (publications etc) just what the weather was like on a certain day in the past? I'd thought of Old Moore's Almanac but that was concerned with predictions of weather patterns, rather than a report of what occurred. I know some newspapers may have recorded weather, but what about before they were widely available?

I am about to start writing up my family history, and have decided to do it in semi-novel fashion, beginning with the family gathering for the burial of my earliest known man in Northenden, Cheshire. I suppose it's not crucial to chuck in a comment about the weather, but it would be nice to be able to add such a detail if at all possible. Almost everything else can be researched, in much the same way as the historical novelist researches her material, but I just wonder if there is something out there in the archives or wherever that would give us a clue.

Any ideas, ladies and gents?

[Neil Wilson]

Not sure if this will help, the Met Office has a archive going back to the late 1800's.
Good luck

[arthurk]

This came up a while back - see here - but I probably only remember it because I contributed to the thread. I gave a link to this site - a kind of historical weather archive, which may be of use.

Arthur

[MythicalMarian]

Great, guys! That will certainly be wonderful for my later 'chapters' - but I'm beginning in the late 16th century, so I guess I'm going to struggle on this one. I'll try googling 'historical weather patterns' though, to see what comes up. Sometimes these things are found by thinking laterally and searching for an event near the time and location. It's all hit and miss though. At least I have the date, so I could perhaps cobble something about an early March day in north Cheshire

And forgive me for not noticing the earlier thread on this - I'm always half asleep after tea!

[Neil Wilson]

And forgive me for not noticing the earlier thread on this - I'm always half asleep after tea!

Hi Myth
This sounds a wonderful idea sleeping after tea. It is also a wonderful idea knowing whether someone got married in the sun or rain, but burials are mostly wet weather days. Keep us informed of your progress.

[Browneyes]

This might sound daft but if you know any Quantity Surveyors they might be able to help you. I worked where there was one who used a website that had seriously useful details about 'historical' weather when dealing with disputes between companies - not sure how far back they went. Unfortunately I've lost touch with him and don't know what the site was called.

Anyhow. Here's a few that might help if you're really stuck!

http://www.john-daly.com/stations/england.gif

http://www.john-daly.com/stations/cet-1770.gif

http://www.john-daly.com/stations/cet-1659.gif

If I find anymore...

[Browneyes]

http://theweatheroutlook.com/twodata/dathistdata.aspx

Perhaps you'll understand it??

[MythicalMarian]

Hi Marian.

Not the 16th c. I know, but there is quite a bit of interesting 18th c. weather information and data to be found in the 'Daily Weather' section of this site (lots of other goodies as well).

Re the Met. Office. A couple of years ago I was writing an article and required details of the weather on a number of dates in the 1860s.
I contacted them by 'phone (01392 885680). The archivist/historian I spoke to was very helpful. Might be of use when your work reaches more recent years.

Thanks, Fin - that link looks great, and I certainly do have a very colourful 18th century with my lot!

This might sound daft but if you know any Quantity Surveyors they might be able to help you. I worked where there was one who used a website that had seriously useful details about 'historical' weather when dealing with disputes between companies - not sure how far back they went. Unfortunately I've lost touch with him and don't know what the site was called.

Anyhow. Here's a few that might help if you're really stuck!

http://www.john-daly.com/stations/england.gif

http://www.john-daly.com/stations/cet-1770.gif

http://www.john-daly.com/stations/cet-1659.gif

If I find anymore...

Thanks, Browneyes - I'll have a root around. You're all wonderful, really

Is there anything our kind folks here don't know? This site should be advertised as a crucial source in all forthcoming family history publications, as far as I'm concerned.

[Browneyes]

Can you say roughly what years you're thinking about? Only Times Online might be helpful?

[MythicalMarian]

Can you say roughly what years you're thinking about? Only Times Online might be helpful?

Alas, my start would be in 1581, so that one's going to be a tough one. But I could certainly have a look at the Times Online for late 18th/early 19th century.

I'll keep you all posted if I find something that would be useful to others. So far, I'm sketching out the start with the burial of my Henry, and trying bring the area to life on that day, rather than just beginning my history with 'Henry Siddall, yeoman, was buried at Northenden, St. Wilfred on Wednesday, 8th March 1581. His eldest son, William....' etc. I've read countless histories like that, which reduce our forebears to names and dates and I just wanted to try something a bit different. I know there's not a lot we can gather beyond names and dates for ancestors of this period, but by setting him in his historical context and placing him in his village at the time in question I hope to make it more lively.

By the way - to anyone else who may be lucky enough to be this far back and wants to compile a history, I can recommend a really good book: Piggins, Husslements and Desperate Debts by Jill Groves ISBN 0 9517782 3 4. The subtitle is 'A social history of North-east Cheshire through wills and probate inventories, 1600-1700' and this particular study centres on Northenden and its environs. The book was published by the Northern Writers Advisory Services and I bought it a few years ago via the Cheshire Family History Society (it may still be available). The author's study (originally part of her PhD thesis, I believe) is directly concerned with the people who would have been neighbours of my family, and gives a good analysis and conclusion to how such people lived. As it was originally for a thesis it is a bit academic in scope, perhaps, but it is a very good source and I am sure that the information it contains and some of the conclusions it draws could be adapted (with the usual caveats and cautions) to a study of many northern English hamlets in the 17th century. I can highly recommend this publication.

Unfortunately, Jill gleans nothing of the weather from her many studied inventories and wills