A graph showing temperatures and snow depth for Kew
http://tinyurl.com/6nrm5
My own memories from the very edge of N.London (Oakwood)
The initial heavy fall of snow 10"-12"with barely a breath of wind-just
after Christmas
A further fall of snow with strong winds a few days later
A freezing rain episode in January as milder air just failed to make it
Some very cold nights. I do recall measuring an air min in the order of 5°F
(-15°C) but my records from then are long gone
Most of the snow action was late December to early February
In February in particular many days saw a gentle thaw for a few hours in the
afternoon although this could have been the Enfield heat island effect
The snow quickly lost it's pristine appearance, the snow ploughs piled it
onto the grass verges, the workmen chipped it off the pavements to add to
these mounds and then in some strange work creation scheme they began
shovelling it onto lorries to take to I know not where. Given the scale of
this endeavour I doubt if it was ever completed.
In my memory a cold, damp and rather dreary winter with persistent snow
cover. The school never closed, the bus always turned up and our classroom
at school (a demountable to the Education Department but a hut to those who
have been taught or subsequently taught in them) displayed splendid frost
patterns on the windows first thing but would have the walls running with
moisture by afternoon as it filled up with steaming pupils post snowballing
or whatever. The highlight was the mass game of football most lunchtimes on
the ice covering the lake in the Town Park. Goodness knows how thick the ice
was or how deep the water was-but we never found out.
By the end of February daytime maxima were rising steadily and the only snow
left was in the form of the large drifts in the more rural areas.

Bye for now
--
George in Epping, West Essex (107m asl)
www.eppingweather.co.uk
www.winter1947.co.uk

In article ,
George Booth writes:
A graph showing temperatures and snow depth for Kew
http://tinyurl.com/6nrm5
My own memories from the very edge of N.London (Oakwood)

My own memories from rural Surrey (Cranleigh) are very similar.

The initial heavy fall of snow 10"-12"with barely a breath of wind-just
after Christmas

Yep. I remember that it started snowing very gently, with very small
flakes, at about 4pm on Boxing Day. The last time I looked out, at about
8pm, there was still only about half an inch on the ground. So it was a
bit of a shock to find that there was about 7 inches on the ground the
next morning (measured in our garden with a ruler). It stopped at about
9 or 10 am, though it snowed again for an hour or so about noon. That
was the end of that fall for us, though not far to the south it seems to
have persisted for much longer with much deeper totals.

A further fall of snow with strong winds a few days later

Yes, we had another 7 inches from that one. A genuine blizzard, possibly
the most dramatic I've ever experienced, though most of it was
overnight. Then we had another 3 inches on New year's Eve.

A freezing rain episode in January as milder air just failed to make it

Yes, I remember the evening before that the weather chart shown on TV
had the one word "Blizzards" for the south, Wales, East Anglia and the
Midlands. So it was an anticlimax the next morning to find that after an
extra inch or so of snow it was now drizzling, with the temperature just
above freezing. But by mid-afternoon, it had started to freeze again.

Some very cold nights. I do recall measuring an air min in the order of 5°F
(-15°C) but my records from then are long gone

Probably the same night that I measured 4F.

Most of the snow action was late December to early February

In Cranleigh, after the events described above I only recall one other
substantial snowfall, an impressive blizzard one Saturday afternoon and
evening in (I think) the second half of January.

In February in particular many days saw a gentle thaw for a few hours in the
afternoon although this could have been the Enfield heat island effect

It was the same in rural Cranleigh. I think we even had one night where
it didn't quite freeze.

The snow quickly lost it's pristine appearance,

I remember by the end that, even in our rural area, the surface had
become quite grey. Presumably that was because most people still had
coal fires.

the snow ploughs piled it
onto the grass verges, the workmen chipped it off the pavements to add to
these mounds and then in some strange work creation scheme they began
shovelling it onto lorries to take to I know not where. Given the scale of
this endeavour I doubt if it was ever completed.
In my memory a cold, damp and rather dreary winter with persistent snow
cover. The school never closed, the bus always turned up

Yep. Unfortunately the heavy snow all fell either during the Christmas
holiday or at a weekend.

and our classroom
at school (a demountable to the Education Department but a hut to those who
have been taught or subsequently taught in them) displayed splendid frost
patterns on the windows first thing

I recall that one way I identified a really cold day was if all the ice
in the corners of the windows, where it was shielded by the curtains to
some extent from the warmth (ha!) of the room, didn't quite melt. This
would only happen in rooms facing east or north. It occurred on a couple
of days when the maxima were about 26F.

Also, I recall icicles up to about 18 inches long dangling from the
gutters. Houses were poorly insulated then, so the thick snow on the
roof would melt but then refreeze when it reached the gutters.

but would have the walls running with
moisture by afternoon as it filled up with steaming pupils post snowballing
or whatever. The highlight was the mass game of football most lunchtimes on
the ice covering the lake in the Town Park. Goodness knows how thick the ice
was or how deep the water was-but we never found out.
By the end of February daytime maxima were rising steadily and the only snow
left was in the form of the large drifts in the more rural areas.

The last day that we had a full cover was, rather neatly, the 28th
February, if my memory can be relied on. Most of it had gone after
another week or so. It was very sunny, with dry air, so I think it
sublimated as much as melted.
--
John Hall
"One half of the world cannot understand
the pleasures of the other."
From "Emma" by Jane Austen (1775-1817)

In article ,
George Booth writes:
A graph showing temperatures and snow depth for Kew
http://tinyurl.com/6nrm5
My own memories from the very edge of N.London (Oakwood)

My own memories from rural Surrey (Cranleigh) are very similar.

The initial heavy fall of snow 10"-12"with barely a breath of wind-just
after Christmas

Yep. I remember that it started snowing very gently, with very small
flakes, at about 4pm on Boxing Day. The last time I looked out, at about
8pm, there was still only about half an inch on the ground. So it was a
bit of a shock to find that there was about 7 inches on the ground the
next morning (measured in our garden with a ruler). It stopped at about
9 or 10 am, though it snowed again for an hour or so about noon. That
was the end of that fall for us, though not far to the south it seems to
have persisted for much longer with much deeper totals.

A further fall of snow with strong winds a few days later

Yes, we had another 7 inches from that one. A genuine blizzard, possibly
the most dramatic I've ever experienced, though most of it was
overnight. Then we had another 3 inches on New year's Eve.

A freezing rain episode in January as milder air just failed to make it

Yes, I remember the evening before that the weather chart shown on TV
had the one word "Blizzards" for the south, Wales, East Anglia and the
Midlands. So it was an anticlimax the next morning to find that after an
extra inch or so of snow it was now drizzling, with the temperature just
above freezing. But by mid-afternoon, it had started to freeze again.

Some very cold nights. I do recall measuring an air min in the order of 5°F
(-15°C) but my records from then are long gone

Probably the same night that I measured 4F.

Most of the snow action was late December to early February

In Cranleigh, after the events described above I only recall one other
substantial snowfall, an impressive blizzard one Saturday afternoon and
evening in (I think) the second half of January.

In February in particular many days saw a gentle thaw for a few hours in the
afternoon although this could have been the Enfield heat island effect

It was the same in rural Cranleigh. I think we even had one night where
it didn't quite freeze.

The snow quickly lost it's pristine appearance,

I remember by the end that, even in our rural area, the surface had
become quite grey. Presumably that was because most people still had
coal fires.

the snow ploughs piled it
onto the grass verges, the workmen chipped it off the pavements to add to
these mounds and then in some strange work creation scheme they began
shovelling it onto lorries to take to I know not where. Given the scale of
this endeavour I doubt if it was ever completed.
In my memory a cold, damp and rather dreary winter with persistent snow
cover. The school never closed, the bus always turned up

Yep. Unfortunately the heavy snow all fell either during the Christmas
holiday or at a weekend.

and our classroom
at school (a demountable to the Education Department but a hut to those who
have been taught or subsequently taught in them) displayed splendid frost
patterns on the windows first thing

I recall that one way I identified a really cold day was if all the ice
in the corners of the windows, where it was shielded by the curtains to
some extent from the warmth (ha!) of the room, didn't quite melt. This
would only happen in rooms facing east or north. It occurred on a couple
of days when the maxima were about 26F.

Also, I recall icicles up to about 18 inches long dangling from the
gutters. Houses were poorly insulated then, so the thick snow on the
roof would melt but then refreeze when it reached the gutters.

but would have the walls running with
moisture by afternoon as it filled up with steaming pupils post snowballing
or whatever. The highlight was the mass game of football most lunchtimes on
the ice covering the lake in the Town Park. Goodness knows how thick the ice
was or how deep the water was-but we never found out.
By the end of February daytime maxima were rising steadily and the only snow
left was in the form of the large drifts in the more rural areas.

The last day that we had a full cover was, rather neatly, the 28th
February, if my memory can be relied on. Most of it had gone after
another week or so. It was very sunny, with dry air, so I think it
sublimated as much as melted.
--
John Hall
"One half of the world cannot understand
the pleasures of the other."
From "Emma" by Jane Austen (1775-1817)

In article ,
George Booth writes:
A graph showing temperatures and snow depth for Kew
http://tinyurl.com/6nrm5
My own memories from the very edge of N.London (Oakwood)

My own memories from rural Surrey (Cranleigh) are very similar.

The initial heavy fall of snow 10"-12"with barely a breath of wind-just
after Christmas

Yep. I remember that it started snowing very gently, with very small
flakes, at about 4pm on Boxing Day. The last time I looked out, at about
8pm, there was still only about half an inch on the ground. So it was a
bit of a shock to find that there was about 7 inches on the ground the
next morning (measured in our garden with a ruler). It stopped at about
9 or 10 am, though it snowed again for an hour or so about noon. That
was the end of that fall for us, though not far to the south it seems to
have persisted for much longer with much deeper totals.

A further fall of snow with strong winds a few days later

Yes, we had another 7 inches from that one. A genuine blizzard, possibly
the most dramatic I've ever experienced, though most of it was
overnight. Then we had another 3 inches on New year's Eve.

A freezing rain episode in January as milder air just failed to make it

Yes, I remember the evening before that the weather chart shown on TV
had the one word "Blizzards" for the south, Wales, East Anglia and the
Midlands. So it was an anticlimax the next morning to find that after an
extra inch or so of snow it was now drizzling, with the temperature just
above freezing. But by mid-afternoon, it had started to freeze again.

Some very cold nights. I do recall measuring an air min in the order of 5°F
(-15°C) but my records from then are long gone

Probably the same night that I measured 4F.

Most of the snow action was late December to early February

In Cranleigh, after the events described above I only recall one other
substantial snowfall, an impressive blizzard one Saturday afternoon and
evening in (I think) the second half of January.

In February in particular many days saw a gentle thaw for a few hours in the
afternoon although this could have been the Enfield heat island effect

It was the same in rural Cranleigh. I think we even had one night where
it didn't quite freeze.

The snow quickly lost it's pristine appearance,

I remember by the end that, even in our rural area, the surface had
become quite grey. Presumably that was because most people still had
coal fires.

the snow ploughs piled it
onto the grass verges, the workmen chipped it off the pavements to add to
these mounds and then in some strange work creation scheme they began
shovelling it onto lorries to take to I know not where. Given the scale of
this endeavour I doubt if it was ever completed.
In my memory a cold, damp and rather dreary winter with persistent snow
cover. The school never closed, the bus always turned up

Yep. Unfortunately the heavy snow all fell either during the Christmas
holiday or at a weekend.

and our classroom
at school (a demountable to the Education Department but a hut to those who
have been taught or subsequently taught in them) displayed splendid frost
patterns on the windows first thing

I recall that one way I identified a really cold day was if all the ice
in the corners of the windows, where it was shielded by the curtains to
some extent from the warmth (ha!) of the room, didn't quite melt. This
would only happen in rooms facing east or north. It occurred on a couple
of days when the maxima were about 26F.

Also, I recall icicles up to about 18 inches long dangling from the
gutters. Houses were poorly insulated then, so the thick snow on the
roof would melt but then refreeze when it reached the gutters.

but would have the walls running with
moisture by afternoon as it filled up with steaming pupils post snowballing
or whatever. The highlight was the mass game of football most lunchtimes on
the ice covering the lake in the Town Park. Goodness knows how thick the ice
was or how deep the water was-but we never found out.
By the end of February daytime maxima were rising steadily and the only snow
left was in the form of the large drifts in the more rural areas.

The last day that we had a full cover was, rather neatly, the 28th
February, if my memory can be relied on. Most of it had gone after
another week or so. It was very sunny, with dry air, so I think it
sublimated as much as melted.
--
John Hall
"One half of the world cannot understand
the pleasures of the other."
From "Emma" by Jane Austen (1775-1817)

In article ,
George Booth writes:
A graph showing temperatures and snow depth for Kew
http://tinyurl.com/6nrm5
My own memories from the very edge of N.London (Oakwood)

My own memories from rural Surrey (Cranleigh) are very similar.

The initial heavy fall of snow 10"-12"with barely a breath of wind-just
after Christmas

Yep. I remember that it started snowing very gently, with very small
flakes, at about 4pm on Boxing Day. The last time I looked out, at about
8pm, there was still only about half an inch on the ground. So it was a
bit of a shock to find that there was about 7 inches on the ground the
next morning (measured in our garden with a ruler). It stopped at about
9 or 10 am, though it snowed again for an hour or so about noon. That
was the end of that fall for us, though not far to the south it seems to
have persisted for much longer with much deeper totals.

A further fall of snow with strong winds a few days later

Yes, we had another 7 inches from that one. A genuine blizzard, possibly
the most dramatic I've ever experienced, though most of it was
overnight. Then we had another 3 inches on New year's Eve.

A freezing rain episode in January as milder air just failed to make it

Yes, I remember the evening before that the weather chart shown on TV
had the one word "Blizzards" for the south, Wales, East Anglia and the
Midlands. So it was an anticlimax the next morning to find that after an
extra inch or so of snow it was now drizzling, with the temperature just
above freezing. But by mid-afternoon, it had started to freeze again.

Some very cold nights. I do recall measuring an air min in the order of 5°F
(-15°C) but my records from then are long gone

Probably the same night that I measured 4F.

Most of the snow action was late December to early February

In Cranleigh, after the events described above I only recall one other
substantial snowfall, an impressive blizzard one Saturday afternoon and
evening in (I think) the second half of January.

In February in particular many days saw a gentle thaw for a few hours in the
afternoon although this could have been the Enfield heat island effect

It was the same in rural Cranleigh. I think we even had one night where
it didn't quite freeze.

The snow quickly lost it's pristine appearance,

I remember by the end that, even in our rural area, the surface had
become quite grey. Presumably that was because most people still had
coal fires.

the snow ploughs piled it
onto the grass verges, the workmen chipped it off the pavements to add to
these mounds and then in some strange work creation scheme they began
shovelling it onto lorries to take to I know not where. Given the scale of
this endeavour I doubt if it was ever completed.
In my memory a cold, damp and rather dreary winter with persistent snow
cover. The school never closed, the bus always turned up

Yep. Unfortunately the heavy snow all fell either during the Christmas
holiday or at a weekend.

and our classroom
at school (a demountable to the Education Department but a hut to those who
have been taught or subsequently taught in them) displayed splendid frost
patterns on the windows first thing

I recall that one way I identified a really cold day was if all the ice
in the corners of the windows, where it was shielded by the curtains to
some extent from the warmth (ha!) of the room, didn't quite melt. This
would only happen in rooms facing east or north. It occurred on a couple
of days when the maxima were about 26F.

Also, I recall icicles up to about 18 inches long dangling from the
gutters. Houses were poorly insulated then, so the thick snow on the
roof would melt but then refreeze when it reached the gutters.

but would have the walls running with
moisture by afternoon as it filled up with steaming pupils post snowballing
or whatever. The highlight was the mass game of football most lunchtimes on
the ice covering the lake in the Town Park. Goodness knows how thick the ice
was or how deep the water was-but we never found out.
By the end of February daytime maxima were rising steadily and the only snow
left was in the form of the large drifts in the more rural areas.

The last day that we had a full cover was, rather neatly, the 28th
February, if my memory can be relied on. Most of it had gone after
another week or so. It was very sunny, with dry air, so I think it
sublimated as much as melted.
--
John Hall
"One half of the world cannot understand
the pleasures of the other."
From "Emma" by Jane Austen (1775-1817)

In article ,
John Hall writes:
and our classroom
at school (a demountable to the Education Department but a hut to those who
have been taught or subsequently taught in them) displayed splendid frost
patterns on the windows first thing

I recall that one way I identified a really cold day was if all the ice
in the corners of the windows, where it was shielded by the curtains to
some extent from the warmth (ha!) of the room, didn't quite melt. This
would only happen in rooms facing east or north. It occurred on a couple
of days when the maxima were about 26F.

Also, I recall icicles up to about 18 inches long dangling from the
gutters. Houses were poorly insulated then, so the thick snow on the
roof would melt but then refreeze when it reached the gutters.

I should clarify that in these two paragraphs I'm talking about my home
rather than about my school.
--
John Hall
"One half of the world cannot understand
the pleasures of the other."
From "Emma" by Jane Austen (1775-1817)

In article ,
John Hall writes:
and our classroom
at school (a demountable to the Education Department but a hut to those who
have been taught or subsequently taught in them) displayed splendid frost
patterns on the windows first thing

I recall that one way I identified a really cold day was if all the ice
in the corners of the windows, where it was shielded by the curtains to
some extent from the warmth (ha!) of the room, didn't quite melt. This
would only happen in rooms facing east or north. It occurred on a couple
of days when the maxima were about 26F.

Also, I recall icicles up to about 18 inches long dangling from the
gutters. Houses were poorly insulated then, so the thick snow on the
roof would melt but then refreeze when it reached the gutters.

I should clarify that in these two paragraphs I'm talking about my home
rather than about my school.
--
John Hall
"One half of the world cannot understand
the pleasures of the other."
From "Emma" by Jane Austen (1775-1817)

In article ,
John Hall writes:
and our classroom
at school (a demountable to the Education Department but a hut to those who
have been taught or subsequently taught in them) displayed splendid frost
patterns on the windows first thing

I recall that one way I identified a really cold day was if all the ice
in the corners of the windows, where it was shielded by the curtains to
some extent from the warmth (ha!) of the room, didn't quite melt. This
would only happen in rooms facing east or north. It occurred on a couple
of days when the maxima were about 26F.

Also, I recall icicles up to about 18 inches long dangling from the
gutters. Houses were poorly insulated then, so the thick snow on the
roof would melt but then refreeze when it reached the gutters.

I should clarify that in these two paragraphs I'm talking about my home
rather than about my school.
--
John Hall
"One half of the world cannot understand
the pleasures of the other."
From "Emma" by Jane Austen (1775-1817)

In article ,
John Hall writes:
and our classroom
at school (a demountable to the Education Department but a hut to those who
have been taught or subsequently taught in them) displayed splendid frost
patterns on the windows first thing

I recall that one way I identified a really cold day was if all the ice
in the corners of the windows, where it was shielded by the curtains to
some extent from the warmth (ha!) of the room, didn't quite melt. This
would only happen in rooms facing east or north. It occurred on a couple
of days when the maxima were about 26F.

Also, I recall icicles up to about 18 inches long dangling from the
gutters. Houses were poorly insulated then, so the thick snow on the
roof would melt but then refreeze when it reached the gutters.

I should clarify that in these two paragraphs I'm talking about my home
rather than about my school.
--
John Hall
"One half of the world cannot understand
the pleasures of the other."
From "Emma" by Jane Austen (1775-1817)

In article ,
George Booth writes:
A graph showing temperatures and snow depth for Kew
http://tinyurl.com/6nrm5
snip

Damien won't believe that, since it took place under a Conservative
government.
--
John Hall "He crams with cans of poisoned meat
The subjects of the King,
And when they die by thousands G.K.Chesterton:
Why, he laughs like anything." from "Song Against Grocers"