Floods And Tempests Of Thunder

Nottingham Train Station  During The 1947 Floods   Flood In Nottingham In 1947 a servere winter blew into Europe from Russia.  When it began to thaw the River Trent burst its banks and brought floods to Nottingham.   Many areas of Nottingham were effected, the water even reached the Victoria Railway Station in the city center.  Fifty thousands acres of farm land were engulfed by water with hundreds of homes cut off from dry land.  Two and a half thousand acres of the city were waterlogged, submerging 28 miles (45 km) of streets. Wilford and neighboring West Bridgford were among the worst locations to suffer.  The same areas had been flooded out the previous winter of 1946.On the 19th of February, the Trent had reached its highest height ever recorded at 79 ft and 4 inches.  Houses on Roland Avenue in Wilford, had water up to second floor bedrooms.    A number of army amphibious 'duck' landing craft and an assortment of boats manned by Sea Scouts were used to evacuate people marooned in houses.  One 'duck' attempted to rescue a group of soldiers stranded in Wilford House but the currents were to strong and the craft became pinned against a set of iron railings.  The driver of the duck attached a rope to the 'Duck' and bravely scampered along the top of the almost completely submerged railings to Wilford Bridge.  The line was then used to haul the floundering craft to safety.  A reporter in the Nottingham Guardian wrote 'Knee deep in swirling water, road after road was silent and deserted, the lights from scores of upstairs windows reflecting in the floods below'.  Wilford Lane 1947, From The Wilford History Society Collection.     Milk Delivery In Roland Avenue, 11th Of February, 1946  From The Wilford History Society Collection. Note The Receeded Tide Line  On The Houses!   Throughout Nottingham 700 volunteers fought the floods and brought relief to those in need.  A local councilor participated in the relief operation and commented to a reporter 'We went along Wilford Lane from Loughborough Road and for a greater portion of the way the 'duck'  was water-bourne.  We had a small R.A.F. dinghy with us from which we delivered parcels, milk and bread.  The people were in high spirits.  They particularly wished us to assure their friends and relatives...we acted as postmen for them and brought letters back to post.'  Wilford In Flood, Date Unknown, From The Wilford History Society Collection     Eva Trueman also recently described a nearly fatal incident that occurred when she was walking her young son and daughter through the flooded Wilford. '...we went across the Suspension Bridge to what was lovers walk by the Becket School... we were just ... looking at the ... wood, doors and window frames that were floating like mad downstream.  Then suddenly little Peter lost his step and fell in.' Eva's daughter watched her mother dive after Peter, Eva was '...clinging to the side of the bank trying to keep Peter's head above water.  I was terrified.'   Among the river debris, drifted a tire that Eva was able to grab and use as a makeshift lifebelt. The tire enabled Eva and Peter to stay above water long enough for passers by to rescue them from the river. Wilford Lane In Flood, Date Unknown, From The Wilford History Society Collection.     Norman Parr recently recounted his memories of the flood in the Evening Post.   One...incident I remember was the sight of a Barton's double decker bus which had been swept through the railway bridge on Wilford Lane. The railway embankment made a formidable barrier to the flow of water and any openings caused a torrent sufficient to move a bus!'   The embankment still stands today on either side of Wilford Lane and Bartons still run the same bus route.  The river defenses have been substantially improved in the years following the flood.  The Trent has been widened and deepened along the Victoria Embankment.   A set of slouses have been built at Home Piere Point to redirect excess water and the Bee Bank defense around Wilford is to be raised this year by 60 cm.  On The Opposite Banks Of The River Trent To The Wilford Church, The Water Begins To Wash Over The River Defenses.

Wilford has always been prone to flood water from the Trent.  Major floods took place in 1327, 1346, 1795, 1852, 1875 and 1912.  Even as recently as the late 1970's, the river rose to alarming heights covering areas that have since been developed from scrub land to a new 'Park & Ride' car park.  The 1795 flood drowned hundreds of sheep in the Trent valley.

The 1852 flood rose 14 feet and 9 inches above its usual level and the Wilford community were pressed into action to prevent the water overflowing the rivers banks.   All of the locals worked through the night to divert flood water down tributaries and flood channel by removing obstacles and strengthening flood banks.

A few years later in 1875 the floods destroyed many cottages in Wilford.  The water was so deep that only the lamp posts identified Wilford Lanes route through the village.  Six people drowned when their cart overturned while trying to navigate Wilford Lane.   Nottingham set up a public relief fund for the inhabitants of Wilford and such was the generosity of the donations that after the village recovered enough money was left over to buy a clock for Wilford School.

Tempest Of Thunder

On the 7th Of July in 1588, Wilford was savaged by what Bakers Chronicle Of Nottingham calls a 'marvelous tempest of thunder'.   Trees were uprooted and all of the houses were demolished.  'A child was taken forth of a mans hand, two spear lengths high, and carried a hundred feet, and then let fall ... and so he died; 5 or 6 were slain.  There fell some hailstones that were 15 inches about.   The church bells were blown to the very limits of the churchyard and slabs of lead were blown up to 400 feet from the church into surrounding fields.

Freak Frost

In 1813 a 13 week frost set in.  The river Trent became a solid plate of ice.  Nottingham people risked there lives by swarming on to the ice.  They skated and slid over it with parties of people setting up fires all the way along the river bank from Trent Bridge to the Wilford Ferry.