Mexborough & Swinton Times – Friday 11 September 1931

Worst for Generations

Recollections of Other Floods

Several older residents were heard during the week-end referring to the floods as the worst they remembered, and to substantiate these opinions we interviewed three Mexborough residents who have lived most of their lives in the town.

Mr. W. A. Lewis, chairman of the Montagu Hospital Board; Mr. B. Thompson, assistant secretary at the hospital; and Mr. Leonard Harrop, who is perhaps better versed in Mexboro’ history than any other person in the neighbourhood.

Mr. Lewis sad Mr. Thompson recalled a flood of some seriousness in 1886, when flood water extended for some little distance up Ferryboat Lane and the Leach was entirely covered. The canal and river were indistinguishable, the one from the other. Mr. Thompson said he thought the worst floods in the locality were before he took up residence in Mexborough, he did not remember any so bad as that of last week-end. As a child he remembered seeing the havoc caused the bursting of the Bradfield dam some twenty years before the flood of 1886. At that time he lived at Oughtibridge, and on the Sunday following the great disaster, which 250 people lost their lives and damage estimated at over £300.000 was done, went with his father to see the devastation in the path of the torrent. He vividly recollected a bedstead . , with sheets dangling, hanging from the first floor of a ruined cottage.

Though not a personal recollection. Lewis told another interesting incident of that catastrophe. An old-fashioned wooden cradle was seen floating down the swollen waters at Mexborough’ and on its being brought to dry land it was found to contain a young baby still fast asleep and little the worst for its perilous voyage.

In addition, it is common knowledge that the bodies of a man, a woman, and a two year old child were washed at at that time and were buried in the church yard. The stone, with its explanatory inscription, set up as the result of a public subscription, may still be seen on the right on entering the churchyard gate.

Mr L Harrop says the last series flood in the neighbourhood was in May 1886. He. thought last week-end’s flood was hardly of such seriousness as those in past years, as, the waterways were much more efficiently maintained now, with the result that t water got away more quickly and the tendency to flooding was not so marked. On more the. one occasion the river and overflowed to such an extent that the road between Toll Bar and Denaby Colliery was impassable and men had to make rafts on which to get to their work. The flood of 1886 affected a !number of premises along the river bank among them the Bull Green works at the east end of Church Street. winch at that time was a cul-de-sac. These works were managed by the brothers John, Everard and Matthew Lowe, was so adversely affected that way were never reopen when the water subsided.

Mr Harrop said Mexborough and never been seriously affected by floods, was never likely to be affected, on account of the fact that it was built on a hillside, the contour rising from about 50 feet above sea level in the lower part to 200 feet in the higher districts.